Desserts · The home kitchen
Turkish Tea
Turkish tea is often prepared as a strong concentrate and diluted in each glass with hot water. That simple arrangement lets one pot serve people who prefer different strengths. This home guide gives quantities for four glasses and includes an alternative when a double teapot is not available. Loose Turkish black tea provides the intended character, while a covered steep keeps the leaves from boiling. Serve the tea clear, with sugar offered separately, and adjust the final dilution at the table. It is a welcoming companion to conversation, a biscuit or a small portion of cake.
A home-style recipe inspired by our menu. Restaurant preparation, portions and ingredients may differ.
Make it at home
Turkish Tea recipe
- Serves
- 4
- Prep
- 5 min
- Cook
- 15 min
- Rest / chill
- 15 min
- Total
- 35 min
Ingredients
- 8 g loose Turkish black tea, about 2 tbsp
- 1 liter water, divided
- 4 tsp granulated sugar, optional for serving
Method
Put the tea leaves in the upper pot of a clean çaydanlık or a small heatproof teapot. Bring 1 liter water to a boil in the lower pot or a kettle.
Pour 250 ml freshly boiled water over the leaves. Keep the remaining 750 ml water gently simmering in the lower pot.
Set the upper pot over the lower pot, or cover the separate teapot and keep it warm beside the kettle. Steep for 15 minutes without boiling the leaves.
Strain about 50–60 ml tea concentrate into each of four heatproof glasses. Top each with roughly 140–150 ml of the remaining hot water, adjusting strength to taste.
Offer the optional sugar separately. Use any remaining hot water to make stronger glasses lighter.
Make it your own.
- Use heatproof glasses and pour slowly; ordinary thin drinking glasses may crack.
- Avoid simmering the tea leaves directly, which can make the concentrate harsh.
- The concentrate-to-water ratio is flexible, so start lighter and add concentrate to taste.