Let me start the article by answering this question. Can you make tea in a coffee maker? Yes, you can, but it might not be the wisest decision. I know the answer is a bit confusing; that is why you should keep reading this report as I will be sharing my experience from A to Z.
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What is Tea?
Before we try pouring tea into coffee mugs, let’s be patient and see what actually tea is. Would you believe it is the second most consumed beverage in the world? Obviously, water is number one. Camellia sinsesis, AKA tea, is a sub-tropical and evergreen plant that is native to Asia. However, now you can see it all around the world.
When poured hot water over cured or fresh tea leaves, it makes a wonderful and aromatic beverage, which is what you called tea. So, this is where the next question smashes the mind; can you make tea in a coffee maker? Here we go.
Can You Make Tea in a Coffee Maker?
Yes, there is hardly any barrier you face in brewing tea-like coffee with a coffee maker. I have done it countless times with magnificent results. However, there are certain advantages and drawbacks when you brew tea in a coffee maker. Coffee machines don’t know whether you place tea or coffee in the basket. All they do is brew whatever you insert, so there shouldn’t be much of a fuss, to be honest.
That said, don’t quit the reading as there are several must-knows, and I have a box full of experience to share.
Different Types of Tea You Can Brew in a Coffee Maker.
Now, what I have figured out by testing out different types of tea variants and reading “brew tea in a coffee maker” articles that different tea sorts tend to use different temperatures to provide you with the best possible taste. As you would know, coffee makers heat water to the near-boiling point, and that range of temperature level might not suit all the tea types.
For example, black tea demands a temperature reading more or less similar to coffee’s temperature level. It means black tea is a definite contender for making tea in a coffee maker. But, others like green tea and Oolong tea use relatively low temperatures (about 10-20 degrees lower than black tea), which says making tea in coffee urns would not be the best possible option.
That is one reason why I don’t consider it as the best way to make tea because I don’t want to play with my expensive tea and spoil it; having said that, if you want to convert your machine to a coffee and tea maker, I have no objection in choosing black tea.
Tea Brewing Methods
Do you like to read about a few different ways to make tea? I’m not a tea master or a barista by any means, but I certainly have a few coffee tea recipes that provide me restaurant-type outputs every time I brew. However, recipes are a dime a dozen on the internet, so I thought it would be helpful to reveal only some brewing methods. Let’s see.
Teacup
This is the easiest method I’ve come across. Just put your favorite tea bag to a teacup and steep in hot water. If you are using loose tea, you can use a paper filter or cloth filter to extract a mouthwatering cup of tea. All you have to do is pour boiling water into loose tea and wait till steeping time is up.
Teapot
Similar to tea varieties, there are loads of variations in teapots as well. I have a teapot with a built-in strainer which makes my life so easy when making tea, and it is easily removable. These strainers help me load and remove loose leaf tea leaves and come very much handy to prevent tea over steeping.
However, teapots come in different sizes, so make sure how many cups you are going to brew, and use tea leaves appropriately.
In addition, you have the luxury of using tea bags to brew with a teapot. There is nothing much you have to do, just throw some tea bags into the teapot and get several cups of tea in an instant. And, yes, you can brew coffee with tea strainers as well.
French Press
If you want to try an unconventional way to brew tea, using a French press would be a good method you can use. First of all, it is so easy to brew tea, and you are bound to face minimal hassle when it comes to the cleaning side of things. Here is how you do.
Put tea bags or tea leaves into the machine, add boiling water and close the lid. Allow the mix sufficient enough time to get steep and continue the process as you normally would do with ground coffee. However, there is one important thing you have to keep in mind. That is to brew only the amount that you plan to consume right away.
This is because the tea you press on the machine will steep with remaining water and can result in over steeping. If this happens, the taste of tea will be a bit bitter, and it is advisable to use different coffee tea presses, because regardless of how you clean, it tends to blend a tiny bit of coffee flavor to the tea you brew.
Coffee Maker
Please move onto the next section; you will see how you can use a coffee maker to make tea.
How Do You Make Tea in a Coffee Maker?
Let’s figure out some methods you can easily try with a coffee maker to brew tea.
How to Make Tea in a Coffee Maker with Tea Bags?
Simply use tea bags in the same way you would brew coffee. You can add tea bags into the coffee filter in place of coffee and brew using the same method. After you keep the tea bags in the filter, add water to the reservoir of the machine, place the carafe on the warmer and wait patiently until it brews tea for you.
How to Make Iced Tea in a Coffee Maker?
First, place the tea bags as you did in the previous method and add water to the coffee maker. Once the brewing process is finished, wring the tea bags into the tea to get an enhanced flavor and transfer it to a separate pitcher. Now, keep the pitcher in the fridge.
Take it out from the refrigerator once the tea is adequately cooled and you are good to go. My results are very much similar to the outputs of a commercial iced tea maker, and I call it iced tea coffee (yes, seriously, I do)!
Can You Make Loose Tea in Coffee Maker?
Yes, you can use loose tea leaves in a coffee maker to brew tea. As we previously mentioned, all you have to do is place the loose tea leaves in the coffee filter and continue the brewing as you would do with coffee.
However, note that not all tea leaves brew at the same temperature levels. Other than the black tea, the rest of the variants require slightly lower levels of heat to provide the exact taste.
How to Make Sweet Tea in a Coffee Maker?
Take about three to four tea bags and place them in the coffee filter area. Then add water and brew the tea exactly with the way you brew coffee. Once the process is completed, add the sweetener of your choice into the tea and enjoy; easy as that. If you want a frothy cup of tea, you can add stevia as the sweetener because sugar does not quite provide frothiness.
How to Make Kratom Tea in a Coffee Maker?
The process of making Kratom tea is nothing different from brewing coffee or tea. However, you have to be vigilant about the amount of kratom tea you use to brew. First, put kratom tea powder into the coffee filter, add water to the reservoir and start brewing. You can double brew the tea to get a better-tasting cup of kratom tea; just pour the brewed tea again into the coffee maker.
How to Make Shroom Tea in a Coffee Maker?
First, you have to grind the shrooms using a coffee grinder for this you can use coffee maker with grinder; else chop them finely. Now, put the ground shrooms in the coffee filter and pour water; if there is a possibility, use a paper bag to extract the maximum out of shrooms.
How to Make Chai Tea in a Coffee Maker?
First, add a couple of black tea bags to the coffee filter, add water and brew the tea. Usually, I add half a teaspoon of cinnamon powder and ginger to the filter to get extra flavor. Until the brewing gets completed, simmer one cup of milk, adding half a tablespoon of vanilla. Then add sugar to the milk and give all a proper mix. Finally, mix the milk with brewed black tea. That is how you make chai in the coffee maker.
What are the Benefits of Making Tea in a Coffee Maker?
There are plenty of coffee machines available in market. Some of them are very expensive and some are cheap. Premium coffee makers added value to the cheap options and makin tea is one of them. These are the advantages I see when using a coffee maker to brew tea.
- You don’t have to pay big bucks for different tea and coffee machines to enjoy both sports. In addition, if you have limited space in your kitchen, using one machine for both tea and coffee will definitely going to help you save some precious space.
- The brewing process is pretty straightforward, as most coffee lovers find it difficult to deal with traditional tea brewing methods. No learning curve; just follow the method you brew coffee.
- High-quality teacups are guaranteed. Moreover, you have the cushion of using both loose tea leaves as well as teabags. So, it really doesn’t matter the form of tea you buy in order to brew using a coffee maker.
- Cleaning the coffee maker after use is pretty much straightforward. That said, make sure you clean the machine as soon as you finish the brewing. If not, the taste of tea will mimic the coffee you brew.
What are the Drawbacks of Making Tea in a Coffee Maker?
I hope you can remember that I mentioned there are drawbacks of brewing tea from a coffee maker. Here they are for your observation.
- When using tea leaves, it is crucial that you give adequate steep time for the leaves to extract the authentic taste. However, this is not possible with a coffee maker as you have no control over the steep time. On the flip side, over steeping kind of blends a bitter taste. Simply put, brewing tea is delicate work, and a coffee maker is not designed to match the requirement of tea.
- As we mentioned earlier, the water temperature does play a pivotal role in the taste of the final result. If you are using black tea, it won’t be much of a concern. But, a coffee maker would not be the best option if you are planning to consume green tea in particular as it requires lesser temperature levels.
- Getting rid of the coffee taste from the machine is complex, and most times, you cannot extract the exact taste of tea due to this issue. In order to mitigate this problem, you will have to use vinegar and hot water and clean the coffee maker vigorously before using it for tea. I know with my personal experience that coffee taste in green tea is horrible, and you would never use a coffee machine to brew tea in the future.
Wrapping
So, tell me, do you want to have a coffee maker that makes tea? Or do you prefer separate tea and coffee pots? Either way, I’m confident that you don’t have to type can you make tea in a coffee maker on Google anymore. This is my honest take on the topic, and I would love to hear your opinion; please take a moment and comment on them below! Have a great day!
