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 - Marty's Musings (22)

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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? ›

It was traditionally composed of black tea with lemon and sugar, orange and pineapple juices, cinnamon, clove, honey, and lemon or orange wedges for garnish. It was typically afforded only by the elite at this time and enjoyed during the cold of winter as a way to warm up.

What is the most popular tea in Russia? ›

Favorite tea types in Russia 2021

According to a survey carried out in 2021, black tea was consumers' preferred tea type in Russia, with 80 percent of surveyed respondents favoring it. Over a quarter of Russians stated that they preferred green tea with additives.

What is Zavarka? ›

The zavarka is a strong tea concentrate made with loose leaf tea . It's then diluted with kipyatok (кипяток) which is boiling hot water. The dilution allows the drinker to control the strength of their tea.

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? ›

Place of Origin

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.

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 the most sold tea in the world? ›

Black Tea: The Most Consumed Tea Globally

According to the World Tea Export Council, black tea is the most consumed tea globally, making up approximately 75% of the total tea consumption.

Which country is number 1 in tea? ›

1. China: 2.2 million tons. The birthplace of tea, China leads the world in tea production. From green and white to oolong and pu-erh, the diversity of Chinese tea is astounding.

What is Russian Ivan tea? ›

Ivan chai or fireweed tea is a fermented herbal tea made from a fireweed (willow) herb that tribes from Siberia and Alaska were adding to food and used for its health benefits for thousands of years. In Russia it has been brewed as a tea drink at least since the 13th century and is known as Koporsky tea.

What is a samovar in Russian? ›

The word samovar literally means self-boiler. The word sam (сам) in Russian means self, and the word varit' (варить) means to boil. Check out the Samovar Museum in Tula!

What do Iranians put in tea? ›

Persian Tea ingredients consist of only water and fresh loose black tea leaves (preferably Ceylon or Darjeeling and Sugar cubes or rock candy as an optional choice to taste. To make Persian tea, bring new water to a boil and warm the teapot.

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.

Why do people put jam in their tea? ›

These Jams were commonly used (as well as honey) during post WWI as a sweetener , as sugar was costly and often rationed. A teaspoon of jam would be added to the hot beverage. Adding a teaspoon of Jam to your tea certainly sounds more appealing than the artificially flavored ones available on the market these days.

What is the Russian thing for tea? ›

The samovar was an important attribute of Russian households and taverns to tea-drinking. It was used by all classes, from the poorest peasants up to the most well-suited people. The Russian expression "to have a sit by the samovar" means to have a leisurely talk while drinking tea from a samovar.

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