Wild Me

Caravans are on the road… that magic road… with their horses and camels. From China, they carry loads of goods for exchanging in the destinations countries in the Middle East; silk, spices, paper… . But this time, they have something new in their loads… dried, special leaves… tea!

Iranian passengers, merchants of Samarkand with Chinese caravan-leaders, they meet each other on caravanserais. When they gathered under the night starry sky… maybe they tasted that luxurious and special herb for the first time. They got fascinated by the warm aroma, the peaceful feeling, and the deep, gentle bitterness of that taste…

The Silk Road, for centuries, was the highway of cultural exchange. That was in that time, when Chai arrived in Iran for the first time, about 500 years ago (late 15th or early 16th century).

In that time, tea was still a scarce commodity in Iran and was used only by kings and courtiers. Common people still drank Persian coffee.

Tea Found its Way to Iran

Then, around 150 years ago (in the late 19th and early 20th centuries), an Iranian diplomat in India found that tea trees were planted successfully in India. He thought that they can also be planted in Iran, as there was the same climate in the north of the country. But in that period, cultivation of the tea was under British colonial control, and exporting tea to other countries was banned. Kashef as-Saltaneh, the Iranian diplomat, secretly brought tea seedlings to Iran. Tea grew very well in the rainy foothills of Northern Iran. Little by little, tea became popular among Iranians, and it became accessible to all segments of society.

Nowadays, tea, or as the Persians say, Chai, is the most popular drink in Iran. Tea is not just a simple drink, but it’s a part of Iranian culture. Every morning starts with a cup of warm tea, and every night ends with that. In all gatherings, the soft smell of tea, with those wonderful spices, flows in the room and spreads a healing sense everywhere.

This tradition is something I cherish personally. In my home, when I have my friends from other cultures, I usually prepare a tray with common flavors that Iranians usually add to their teas. Rose buds or rosewater, cardamom, saffron, cinnamon, and dried lime in following my grandma’s way to drink her morning tea. I ask my guests to choose their favorite flavors. I make some cups of warm tea with their chosen flavors, and then, we have our cozy time with endless peace and warmth to talk.

Persian tea is not something that you grab in your short break time, “Persian tea” is a quality time, when you want to sit and sip your life moment by moment. With every sip, you wash your heart with a warm shower, your soul finds peace, and everything slows down in your speed.

How to Make Persian Tea

If you also like to enjoy that special feeling, you can follow these steps to make a cup of warm, healing tea:

First, you need some high-quality Persian dried tea leaves. In Iran, you can find them easily in every supermarket. Outside of Iran, you can find it in Middle-Eastern supermarkets.

Tea contains L-theanine, a natural compound that calms the mind and reduces stress, without making you sleepy!

1. Boil some water. For each cup of tea, boil 1.25 cups of water.
2. After boiling water, wait the temperature to descend to 90 °C. Boiling water cleans it of any unwanted particles. But for making tea with balanced taste, color, and aroma, you would better use it at 90 °C.
3. For each cup of tea, add 1.5 teaspoons of tea leaves to the teapot. Then add water to that.
4. Here is the time you can change a simple cup of tea to a memorable experience! Choose your favorite flavor/s and add it/them to your teapot. A very small pinch of saffron is always an excellent choice, just remember to grind it before using it to take the best color. Adding some orange blossoms gives you a far feeling of spring, adding some drops of rosewater evokes paradise to you. If you want to have a mild sour taste, add some slices of dried lime. Cinnamon, although it changes the color of your tea to a bit darker and blur, makes it warmer with a deeper scene of heal. And adding some ginger converts your tea to a perfect home remedy, for example, if you have a cold or just when you feel weak.
5. Let this special combination brew on mild heat for 20 minutes.
6. Enjoy your cup of peace!