How-to
How to Use a Glass Teapot with an Infuser Without Stewing the Tea
Loose-leaf tea is straightforward once you know where the leaves go and when to lift them out. Here's the method, plus cleaning and common mistakes.
To use a glass teapot with an infuser, put loose tea in the removable infuser, add water at the right temperature for your tea, and let it steep. Lift the infuser out when the tea is ready so the leaves stop brewing. Below is a beginner's guide to amounts, timings, cleaning and the difference between an infuser and a strainer.
You don't need a special ceremony. A mug, somewhere to set the wet infuser and a look at the clock will do most of the work.
Why use a glass teapot?
A glass teapot lets you watch loose leaves open and the water change colour as they steep. That makes brewing a little easier to judge, especially with a tea you haven't tried before. Colour alone won't tell you exactly when it's ready, though: a dark-looking tea can still need another minute, while a delicate one may taste strong before it looks it.
The Glass Infuser Teapot, Round Pearl, 400ml has a removable infuser and a rounded glass body, so you can see the tea as it brews. Its 400ml capacity suits a pot for one or two. It's a good example of the main advantage of this sort of pot: you can remove the leaves without pouring every last drop straight away.
There is one less glamorous advantage. You can see whether you remembered to wash yesterday's leaves out.
What do you need to make loose-leaf tea?
You need a teapot with a removable infuser, loose tea, water, a kettle and a cup. A teaspoon is useful for measuring the leaves; a small saucer gives the wet infuser somewhere to sit after brewing.
Start with roughly one teaspoon of loose tea per 200 to 250ml of water, then adjust to taste. Large, light leaves take up more room on a spoon than small, dense ones, so follow the tea packet if it gives a different measure. Leave space in the infuser for the leaves to expand. Packing it tight is the tea equivalent of trying to open an umbrella in a cupboard.
A teapot is not needed for every cup. If you're making tea for one in a mug, a cup infuser works in much the same way: leaves in, water over, infuser out when the brew is ready.
How to use a glass teapot with an infuser, step by step
The infuser holds the leaves in the water while they steep; removing it separates the brewed tea from the leaves. That is the whole mechanism, and the reason a removable infuser is handy if you want to keep the rest of the pot for a second cup.
- Warm the pot. Swirl a little warm water around the empty teapot, then pour it away. This takes the chill off the glass before you brew. Avoid sudden changes from very cold to very hot water.
- Add the leaves. Put your measured tea into the infuser and set it in the pot. For a smaller brew, the Glass Infuser Teapot, Tower Shape, 350ml has a removable infuser and room for a pot for one or two. You needn't fill the pot to its capacity every time.
- Pour in the water. Check the tea packet first. As a general starting point, use water just off the boil for black tea, cooler water for green and white tea, and freshly boiled water for most herbal infusions. If you have no temperature-control kettle, let boiled water stand briefly before using it for a delicate tea.
- Time the brew. Start with about 3 to 5 minutes for black tea, 2 to 3 for green, 2 to 4 for white, and 5 to 7 for herbal infusions. Your tea's instructions take priority, and tasting a spoonful is more useful than waiting for a particular colour.
- Lift out the infuser. Set it on a saucer and pour your tea. Don't leave the leaves sitting in the pot if you plan to drink the rest later: they'll keep steeping, and the flavour can turn harsh. If you're making a larger pot in the Glass Infuser Teapot, Charcoal Ribbed Pearl, 950ml, that last step matters all the more when cups are poured at different times.
Tip: For a second infusion, keep the damp leaves in the removed infuser rather than leaving them in the teapot. Some loose teas brew well again; taste the next pot and give it a little longer if needed.
Why doesn't the tea taste right?
If a brew tastes disappointing, change one thing at a time. It's easier to learn what you like when you haven't altered the amount of tea, water temperature and timing all at once.
The tea tastes bitter
Lift the infuser out sooner next time. Leaves left in the pot continue to steep, even after you've poured the first cup. Green tea can also taste harsh if the water is too hot, so check its packet and let the kettle cool before pouring.
The tea tastes weak
Try a little more leaf or a slightly longer steep. Check that water can circulate through the infuser rather than filling it firmly to the top. If you're brewing less water in a large teapot, make sure the leaves are actually submerged.
Bits of leaf end up in the cup
Fine particles can pass through some infusers, particularly with very small-cut tea. Let the tea settle before pouring, or pass it through a fine strainer into your cup. A few specks are annoying, but they don't mean you've used the pot incorrectly.
How do you clean a glass teapot and infuser?
Empty the leaves once the pot and infuser have cooled, then wash both with warm water, washing-up liquid and a soft cloth or brush. Rinse well and leave them to dry before putting the infuser back inside. Pay attention to the infuser's holes, where small leaves can lodge.
If tea stains build up, soak the affected parts in warm, soapy water before gently cleaning them. Don't scrape the glass with anything abrasive. None of the glass teapots mentioned here has a dishwasher-safe claim, so wash by hand rather than assuming the dishwasher is fine. A quick rinse after each brew is much easier than dealing with a stubborn ring later.
Safety basics
- Set the pot on a stable surface and handle it carefully after adding hot water; glass and fittings can become hot.
- Keep the kettle, filled pot and removed infuser away from the edge of the worktop and out of children's reach.
- Don't put a glass teapot on a hob or over a tealight warmer unless its own instructions explicitly say it is suitable. The glass teapots here have no hob-safe or warmer-safe claim.
- Avoid sudden temperature changes, such as pouring hot water into a very cold pot or placing a hot pot on a cold, wet surface.
Glass teapot and infuser FAQs
What's the difference between a tea infuser and a strainer?
An infuser holds leaves in the water while they brew; a strainer catches leaves as you pour, though the names often overlap. The removable infuser in a glass teapot does the first job. The Small Herbal Teapot, Blue Pattern is a ceramic alternative with a metal strainer inside, made for an individual serving of herbal infusion.
Can I use tea bags in a glass infuser teapot?
Yes. You can brew a tea bag in the pot and remove it when the tea is ready. The removable infuser is most useful for loose leaves, which would otherwise be harder to separate from the drink.
Can I leave the infuser in while I drink the tea?
You can, but the tea will continue to brew. Lift it out when the flavour is where you want it, especially if you'll be returning for another cup later.
Can a glass teapot go on the hob?
Only if the instructions for that particular teapot explicitly allow it. The glass teapots featured here have no hob-safe claim, so heat the water in a kettle and pour it into the pot instead.
Before you make the first pot
Give the leaves room, use the tea packet as your guide to temperature and timing, and remove the infuser once you like the taste. That's enough to make a good start; the next cup is where you fine-tune it. You can compare sizes in our glass infuser teapot collection, or, if you're choosing for someone else, read our gift guide for tea lovers.
