Are you a coffee or a tea person?

You would think that vodka is Russia’s favorite drink, but actually it is black tea. They drink it at breakfast, lunch and dinner. And if you ever travelling by train in Russia (do that and it will be a highlight of your trip), you guessed it right, you’d be served a cup of tea.

To enjoy a cup of traditional Russian tea, follow these steps:

• Place loose tea leaves in a medium-sized teapot (about one teaspoon per person).
  

  
  
• Fill the teapot to the brim with hot water and let it steep for about five minutes.  Do not discard the leaves. Congratulations, you just made something Russian people call ZAVARKA. There are two schools of thought when it comes to using ZAVARKA. Some say it becomes poisonous after ten minutes and some say it’s good for up to 24 hours. Two of my relatives got into a heated argument about the use of ZAVARKA and just stopped speaking to each other. I guess you will have to decide what tribe you want to be a part of.
  

  
  
• Drop a thin slice of lemon in your cup then add ZAVARKA and hot water to the tea cup. So, how do you know how much ZAVARKA you need to pour into your cup? It all depends on how strong you like your tea. Try not to get any tea leaves in your cup.
  

  
  
• Add a teaspoon or two of white sugar to the cup and enjoy your authentic Russian tea experience.  Have a piece of cake or BOOBLIC (Russian bagel) with your tea. 

Did you know that when people in Russia get sick with flu, they drink a lot of tea with raspberry preserve added to it?