Throughout the Middle East and parts of the Mediterranean, hot tea is a comfort, a social drink, and a means of getting to know one another. In that part of the world, including Egypt where I grew up, Shai or Arabic tea is an integral part of hospitality. Stop by someone’s home or office, even for a few minutes, they’ll offer you a seat and a warm cup of mint tea. Most business deals, conversations, family gatherings, heck, even marriage proposals happen around a pot of tea — often served with a little dessert like a piece of baklava, cake, cookies or even something like a biscotti or chocolate tahini date bars. Arabic tea with fresh mint, known as shai bil na’ana’a, is my favorite drink to share with friends (I wrote all about the heart-binding ritual that is tea between friends in my debut cookbook.) This simple mint tea is easy to make at home with a few ingredients: boiling water, black loose-leaf tea, fresh mint, and sugar or honey to your liking.
What is Arabic tea?
There are many types of Arabic tea, but the one I grew up with was strong, amber colored, sweetened with sugar, and made with fresh mint and black tea. Traditionally, we sweeten the pot of Arabic tea with lots of sugar, but now many serve it unsweetened with cubes of sugar (or honey) on the side. You can (and should try) other flavors like:
sage cinnamon sticks star anise lightly crushed cardamom pods.
How to make it
This Arabic mint tea recipe is very simple, and it is essentially steeped black tea with fresh mint leaves. Here is how to make it:
Boil the water. In a tea kettle over medium-high heat, bring six cups of water to a boil. Add the loose-leaf black tea. When the water comes to a rolling boil, stir in two teaspoons of loose leaf black tea. Allow the tea to boil for just one minute, this will help release the flavor of black tea. Off heat, add the fresh mint. Turn the heat off, then add a handful of fresh mint leaves. (I like a lot of mint, like 6 large leaves or so). Rest. Cover the pot and allow the tea to rest undisturbed for about 5 minutes or so. This enhances the experience and ensures the water is infused with flavor from both the black tea and fresh mint. Serve. Add sugar directly to the pot and stir or pour the tea in clear cups, and serve the sweetener on the side.
How to serve Arabic tea
If you come to my home, I will serve you tea brewed in an old heirloom pot passed down over the years, and poured into small, clear cups to show off its color — the tea should be an amber-red. If you like, add a fresh mint leaf to each cup. The tea is meant to be savored, and the small cups are intended to be refilled over and over again until the pot is finished. Enjoy the tea with a little dessert like ghorayebah (bite-size butter cookies), a piece of honey cake, or creamy mahalabia, a Middle Eastern-style milk pudding made with rose water.
Teatime desserts
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This recipe is from The Mediterranean Dish Cookbook: 120 Bold and Healthy Recipes You’ll Make on Repeat. In her book, Suzy Karadsheh brings cross-culturally inspired dishes from throughout the Mediterranean into American home kitchens, using easy-to-find ingredients and easy-to-follow, tested-to-perfection recipes to make your meals more vibrant, delicious, and yes — even a little healthier, too! Visit Our Shop.
