Russian Tea Recipe - Marty's Musings (2024)

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Instant Russian Tea recipe with Tang is an old holiday favorite that’s the perfect inexpensive hot drink for the holidays!

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The slightly sweet smell of an evergreen tree. Christmas tree lights twinkling in a dimly lit room.

Strains of beautiful music from Point of Grace A Christmas Story CD.

Sound perfect? I think so! The one day that stands out in all our family traditionsis Thanksgiving Day.

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Since our children were little the day began with me putting the burly turkey in the oven before anyone opened their eyes.

Everyone awakened to the smell of turkey wafting through the house and the countdown to Thanksgiving Day parades.

From our family meal of turkey and all the fixin’s to hunting down the perfect tree at the Christmas tree lot, this day is one to cherish for all of us.

Instant Russian Tea is a tasty part of this tradition as well. This hot beverage is one our familyalwaysenjoys on Thanksgiving night as we decorate the Christmas tree.

We love to drink the tea all winter but the first batch gets made just before Thanksgiving.

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Why is it called Russian Tea?

Russian Tea has very little to do with Russia and a lot to do with Southern creativity. The tea takes its name from the black tea with lemon and sugar that was the preferred beverage of upper-class Russians in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Eventually it became a Southern staple, handed down in church cookbooks over the years.

What is Russian Tea made with?

A 1966 edition of theStatesville (North Carolina) Record and Landmarkincluded a recipe that swapped loose black tea for instant and the oranges for the recently invented powdered orange drink, Tang, along with sugar and spice. Tang eventually printed its own recipe for the drink.

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What kind of tea is used in Russian Tea?

For my recipe you can use any kind of tea powder but I use instant tea with or without sugar. If you like it sweet go with the type with sugar. If not go sugar free!

Is Tang still available?

Some readers have asked if Tang is still available. The answer is yes but if you can’t find it at your favorite store you can order it here on Amazon.

I have used some generic orange drink mixes but each store varied and I learned I prefer the original Tang.

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Substitutions

  • Note of caution: Do not try and use whole cloves to save money by crushing them yourselves. Picking bits of cloves out of your tea is not fun. Not that I would know about that ~eye roll~
  • If you don’t have Kool-Aid try using the single lemonade drink mixes.
  • If you use sweetened iced tea add less sugar to the Russian tea mix.
  • The tea hardens in the container over time but I love to drink it through the cold winters!
  • You can try substituting a generic store brand orange drink mix but I’ve had mixed results with this.
  • Try adding a teaspoon ground allspice to the instant beverage mix.

How to store Instant Russian Tea.

Sometimes if I’m lazy I just pour as much of the dry mix as I can back into the Tang container. I also have a specific glass Christmas jar that I’ve used through the years. An airtight container is preferred for this spiced tea mix.

Giving this recipe to friends and family.

This tea makes a great gift idea for teachers at school and church as well as for a special friendship. A mason jar is a good choice, wrapped in a pretty ribbon or used with these Christmas mason jar labels or with this merry and bright label. If you don’t have a mason jar use any large jar and maybe even add some cinnamon sticks with a ribbon for the perfect treats.

Ingredients:

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(I’ve included some affiliate links for your convenience.Click here to read myfulldisclosure policy.)

Instant orange drink (Tang)
Unsweetened lemonade-flavor drink powder
Unsweetened instant tea mix
White sugar
Ground cloves
Ground cinnamon

See the recipe card for quantities.

Instructions:

Pour Tang into large bowl.

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Add lemonade mix to bowl.

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Add instant tea.

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Pour in white sugar.

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Add teaspoon ground cloves.

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Add two teaspoon ground cinnamon to the tea mixture.

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Mix everything together.

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When ready to serve stir as many teaspoons as you’d like into a mug of boiling water.

It’s totally up to your preference but I like the drink to be thick and not so watery.

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When ready to serve pour boiling water over mixture in your favorite mug.

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Feel free to let the tea steep as long as you want and enjoy your Christmas time treat!

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Russian Tea Recipe with Tang

Instant Russian Tea recipe with Tang is an old holiday favorite that's the perfect inexpensive hot drink for the holidays!

Course Beverage

Keyword Instant Russian Tea

Author Marty’s Musings

Ingredients

  • 1 lb. jar instant orange drink Tang
  • 1 pkg. unsweetened lemonade Kool-Aid
  • 3/4 cup unsweetened instant tea
  • 2 cups sugar
  • 1 tsp ground cloves
  • 2 tsp. ground cinnamon

Instructions

  • Mix all ingredients well and store in tightly closed container.

  • Add to hot water as many teaspoons as desired to taste.

Video

Notes

I used sweetened instant tea and cut back on the amount of sugar added to compensate. I also used 4 single instant lemonade packets instead of kool-aid.

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Russian Tea Recipe - Marty's Musings (2024)

FAQs

What kind of jam do Russians put in their tea? ›

In Japan, the term "Russian tea" is used to refer specifically to the act of having black tea with a spoonful of jam, whether added into the cup or placed on the tongue before drinking. The typical choice is strawberry jam, but not exclusively so.

What makes Russian tea different? ›

This black tea is smoky and smoldering. Its flavors are analogous to that of our Lapsang Souchong and it is described on our website as almost "pipe-ready". The smokiness that you taste in this tea will remind you of the deep breaths that you inhale around a summer campfire.

What is the most popular tea in Russia? ›

Lemon is the most commonly used condiment for black tea in Russia and citrusy black tea blends are popular as well. Today, green tea is very common too. We can't talk about Russian tea without mentioning Russian Caravan tea.

How to make Russian caravan tea? ›

To prepare Russian Caravan, use one level teaspoon of tea leaves for every six ounces of water in your pot or cup. Heat water to boiling, then infuse the tea leaves for three to four minutes. Enjoy this tea on its own, or take it with milk and sweetener if you prefer.

What is the most common jam in Russia? ›

The most popular types of varenye are made from locally available berries and fruits, such as sour cherries, strawberries, raspberries, apricots and apples. In general, virtually any kind of fruit, as well as some culinary vegetables, nuts, pine cones, and rose petals are used.

What is Russian jam called? ›

Varenye is a traditional Russian home-made jam. It's very popular in Russia to make jam at home out of strawberries, apricots, cherry, raspberry and other fruits and berries of the season.

Why is it called Russian tea in the USA? ›

American recipes for the drink date back to the late 19th century, when according to Garden & Gun, well-to-do Yanks adopted the Russian style of serving tea with lemon and sugar. As the blog Yesterdish notes, the name Russian Tea initially referred to a simple iced brew with lemon.

What is the strongest Russian tea? ›

Chifir (Russian: чифи́рь, romanized: čifir', or alternatively, чифи́р) is an exceptionally strong tea, associated with and brewed in Soviet and post-Soviet detention facilities such as gulags and prisons. Some sources mention properties of a light drug, causing addiction.

Does da mean yes in Russian? ›

The Russian word for Yes is Да (da). Let's check out this lesson on the Yes in Russian. You can certainly use other words to express your agreement.

What is Smoky Russian Tea? ›

Inspired by the ancient classic Russian caravan tea that got its smoky flavour from the old tea trade routes, and the caravans evening campfires along them. This is a pinewood smoked Lapsang Souchong black tea. Blended with Formosa Oolong sourced from Taiwan & Mao Feng Keemun sourced from China.

What is the difference between English and Russian Tea? ›

Unlike English tea culture, in Russia, tea is usually taken black and sweet. Despite the rising popularity of green tea in the nation, black tea is still the most common. Often a sugar cube is placed between the teeth and then the tea is sipped through it.

What is added to Russian tea in place of milk? ›

You should never drink Russian tea pure, but always will sugar, lemon or jam. Adding jam to tea is a unique tradition untypical for other tea cultures where the usual condiments are milk, cream, lemon or sugar.

Is Russian Caravan the same as Lapsang Souchong? ›

Russian Caravan is a blend of oolong, keemun, and lapsang souchong teas. It is described as an aromatic and full-bodied tea with a sweet, malty, and smoky taste. Some varieties do not include lapsang souchong, and thus have a less smoky flavor, while others include assam tea.

Do Russians put jam in tea? ›

"If you want to try something uniquely Russian, try a cup of nice, black tea with a spoonful of fruit jam stirred in. Tea is the national drink of Russia, while the jam is a happy bonus."

How do Russians drink tea with jam? ›

Often a sugar cube is placed between the teeth and then the tea is sipped through it. Other traditional ways of sweetening tea are with a spoonful of jam, or even marmalade. Again, the tea can be sipped through a spoonful of the preserve, or it can be added straight to the cup.

Do Russians put jelly in their tea? ›

According to Russian tea drinking tradition we put a small spoonful of jam in our mouths and then sip the tea through the jam.

What is Russian marmalade? ›

We may think of marmalade as fruit preserve, but it is definitely not the case in Russia. In Russia marmalade is a traditional jelly candy. typically made of fruit. They are usually in fruit shape.

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