US scientists recommend adding salt to make the perfect cup of tea.
//Summary - Level-C2//
US-based scientist Professor Michelle Francl suggests adding salt to tea to enhance its flavour, a method supported by eighth-century Chinese manuscripts. This unconventional advice, detailed in her book 'Steeped: The Chemistry of Tea, aims to reduce bitterness by blocking specific taste receptors. Despite sparking debate and diplomatic commentary, Francl encourages an open-minded approach to tea experimentation and advises against microwaving tea for tea due to taste and health concerns.
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The British claim to know something about making a good cup of tea.
The beverage is a cultural institution in the UK, where an estimated 100 million cups are consumed daily.
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But now a scientist based more than 3,000 miles (5,000km) away in the US claims to have discovered the secret to a perfect cuppa that many Brits would find absurd - adding salt.
Professor Michelle Francl's research has caused quite a stir in the UK, even prompting a diplomatic intervention from the US embassy.
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"We want to assure the good people of the United Kingdom that the unthinkable idea of adding salt to Britain's national drink is not official United States policy. And never will be," the embassy said on X, formerly known as Twitter.
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This is not the first time the drink has caused controversy on both sides of the Atlantic.
In 1773, demonstrators in Boston, colonial Massachusetts, threw 300 crates of tea into the harbour to protest British taxes - a pivotal moment in sparking the American Revolution.
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"I certainly didn't want to cause a diplomatic incident," Prof Francl, a professor of chemistry at Bryn Mawr College in Pennsylvania, tells the BBC.
"My emails went crazy today. I didn't expect to wake up this morning and see many people talking about salt in their tea."
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So why add salt?
It turns out it's not a new idea - in fact, the ingredient is mentioned in eighth-century Chinese manuscripts, which Prof Francl analysed to perfect her recipe.
"Our understanding of it as chemists is new," says Prof Francl.
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She explains that salt acts as a blocker to the receptor that makes tea taste bitter, especially if it has been brewed.
You counteract the drink's bitterness by adding a pinch of table salt - an undetectable amount.
"It's not like adding sugar. I think people are afraid they will taste the salt".
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She urges tea-loving Brits to keep an open mind before prejudging her research, which she has documented in her new book Steeped: The Chemistry of Tea, published by the Royal Society of Chemistry.
"It's OK to experiment," she says. "I've done experiments in my kitchen for this - channel your inner scientist."
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Prof Francl had loved tea since her mother made her first cup when she was 10.
Everyone has their idea of what makes the perfect cuppa, but Prof Francl recommends using loose leaves rather than tea bags and stirring the drink constantly to expose the tea to the water and milk.
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Adding a small squeeze of lemon juice can also remove the "foam" that sometimes appears on the drink's surface, she adds.
Other suggestions include using short, sturdy mugs to keep the tea hotter, warming the cup and milk, and adding the milk after pouring the tea.
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But the most important thing she advises is never to heat the water in the microwave: "It's less healthy, and it doesn't taste as good," says Prof Francl.
"You end up with scum on the surface of the tea, and that scum contains some of the antioxidants and flavour compounds."
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While microwaving tea may sound alien in the UK, it is "widespread" in the US.
"Americans have some terrible tea-making habits," says Prof Francl.
"I've had better cups of tea in petrol stations in Ireland than in fancy restaurants in the US.
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"I think it's just that people don't know [how to make a good cup]. If you don't drink tea, you don't know that you're making someone a terrible cup of tea and giving them a miserable experience".
She says she loves coming to the UK, where she knows she can find a decent brew.
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"I know I can get a good cup of tea when I land. It is good to have that in common," she says.
So what next for British-American tea relations?
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The US Embassy is not taking Prof Francl's advice and says it will stick to the "proper way" of making tea - by microwaving it - while the UK Cabinet Office is adamant that it can only be produced in a kettle.
US scientist recommends adding salt to make the perfect cup of tea
https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-68085304
