How to drink tea in Russia
In Russia, tea is drunk according to certain traditions, but there are no strict rules. Each family or company brews tea in their own way: some scald the teapot with boiling water before adding the leaves, others pour boiling water in several stages, and still others prefer packaged tea for convenience.
Some features of tea drinking in Russia:
Use of tableware: porcelain cups with saucers, a dessert plate for each guest, a teaspoon, a dessert fork, and a knife for each guest.Brewing: The tea leaves were placed in a special teapot, which was placed on a samovar and covered with a cloth doll to keep it warm. The prepared tea was poured into cups, and boiling water was added from the samovar, so that everyone could adjust the strength of the drink. Drinking with sugar: Each person stirred the sugar with their own spoon, and tongs were used for lump sugar. There is a tradition of drinking tea "in-cheek" (with a piece of sugar behind the cheek) or "in-bite" (cutting a piece of sugar into small pieces and slowly eating it like a treat). Snacks: sweet and salty pies, dried fruits, bagels, gingerbread, jam and honey are served with tea.
History
Tea drinking traditions in Russia were formed gradually. The drink, which came from China, quickly gained popularity among the nobility and merchants and eventually penetrated into the homes of ordinary people. In different social strata, there were their own tea drinking traditions:
tea