Kitchen & Food

#9 · Fish leaves out of tea

A loose leaf escaped the strainer? Fish it out elegantly with the tip of a chopstick. Tea ceremony energy.

Loose-leaf tea bought in a moment of enthusiasm has a way of ending up floating in the mug when the infuser cannot be found. A chopstick is the quiet, precise way to get the leaves out without straining the whole thing into a second cup.

How to do it

1. Let it steep to strength first. Fishing early just means weak tea with fewer leaves in it.
2. Slide a clean chopstick in and draw it slowly across the surface, herding the floating leaves towards one side.
3. Press them against the inside of the rim and lift them out onto a saucer.
4. Repeat until what remains is fine enough to ignore.

Why it works

Wet tea leaves cling to a slightly rough wet surface through surface tension - the same effect that makes wet paper stick to a worktop. Unlacquered bamboo has exactly the right texture for it, which is why a metal spoon is noticeably worse at this.

Tips & warnings

• Works equally well for bay leaves in a curry and thyme stalks in a stew.
• Very fine tea dust will defeat you. Pour through a small sieve instead.
• Don't leave a chopstick standing in a full mug of hot tea - it tips more easily than you would think.