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This is Highly Recommend, a column dedicated to what we're eating, drinking, and buying right now. Here, Lauren Corona writes about the biodegradable tea bags that saved her relationship.
As anyone who's spent more than 10 minutes with me knows, I can't shut up about how smart, talented, funny, and beautiful my girlfriend, Jen, is. But there's one area of life where she's just wrong—how she makes her tea. As a Brit I'm serious about tea. I love making loose-leaf tea and usually do so in a teapot or with an infuser basket. Jen is also into quality tea, allegedly, but she prefers tea bags, leaving them in the cup right until the last sip.
It's not her fault (clearly, nobody taught her how to brew tea properly where she grew up in Australia), but it's annoying that I can't just make one big pot of loose-leaf tea for the both of us . Thankfully, Numola Unbleached Tea Filter Bags are exactly what's needed to save the day—and my relationship—from potential discord. You fill these bags with the loose-leaf tea of your choice, tie the drawstring, and use them as you would any other tea bag. So, I can brew my tea for three to five minutes for my perfect result, while Jen can leave hers in until it's as stewed as she likes.
The problem with typical tea bags, versus a basket infuser or teapot, is that they don't provide tea leaves with as much room to expand and move around for the perfect brew. These bags, however, are far larger than an average tea bag, giving leaves the space they need to release their flavor.
The durable strings make it easy to fish the bag out of your mug once you're ready to drink your tea. Or you can tie them securely, snip off the excess, and let your tea bag hang out in there for as long as you want. Your loved ones might tease you for it, but that's your prerogative. You don't need to deal with cleaning leaves out of baskets or teapots since the biodegradable bags go straight into the trash or compost.
I love these tea filter bags for making it easier to brew tea in the individual ways that Jen and I like it. And—I have to get this off my chest—now and then, I'll even leave my own bag in to get a stronger brew for certain teas, such as masala chai.