Editing Infuser

{{Short description|Tea leaf holder for steeping; not a bag}}
{{Refimprove|date=February 2009}}
{{use dmy dates |date=April 2021}}

[[File:Tea ball.jpg|thumb|A cheap generic mesh tea infuser ball]]

A '''tea infuser''' is a device in which loose, dried [[tea]] leaves are placed for [[steeping]] or brewing, in a [[mug]] or a [[teapot]] full of hot water. It is often called a '''teaball''', '''tea maker''' or '''tea egg'''.<ref>{{cite book |title=The New Tea Book: A Guide to Black, Green, Herbal, and Chai Teas |last1=Perry |first1=Sarah |first2=Alison |last2=Miksch |year=2001 |publisher=Chronicle Books |location=San Francisco, CA |isbn=0-8118-3053-5 |page=63 }}</ref> The tea infuser gained popularity in the first half of the 19th century. Tea infusers enable one to easily steep tea from [[fannings]] and broken leaf teas.<ref>{{cite news |title=Tea Balls for Conservation |first=Felix |last=Cooper |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1943/02/19/archives/tea-balls-for-conservation.html |newspaper=The New York Times |date=February 19, 1943 |page=18 |access-date=2011-01-23}}</ref>

==Use==
A tea infuser performs a similar function as a [[tea bag]], a later American invention. The infuser is generally a small [[mesh]], perforated metal container, or covered [[spoon]] that holds tea leaves, in varying sizes, to steep single or multiple servings at once. Common shapes of infusers include spherical, conical and cylindrical. One style of infuser is a split sphere with [[tongs|tong]]-like handles to open its mesh container.<ref>{{cite book |title=Tea and Etiquette: Taking Tea for Business and Pleasure |last=Johnson |first=Dorothea |author2=James Norwood Pratt |year=2002 |publisher=Capital Books |location=Sterling, VA |isbn=1-931868-00-X |pages=70–71 }}</ref>

The infuser is placed in a cup or pot of hot or boiling water, allowing the tea to brew without loose tea leaves spilling into the pot or cup. A rod or chain is may be attached to the container of the infuser to simplify retrieval from the pot or cup. Infusers with large holes may not catch all the leaves, requiring the use of a [[tea strainer]] to remove the remaining pieces.<ref name="Zijderveld">{{cite web |url=http://video.about.com/coffeetea/How-to-Brew-a-Cup-of-Tea.htm |title=How to Brew a Cup of Tea |access-date=2009-02-16 |last=Zijderveld |first=Annelies |work=About.com: Coffee/Tea |publisher=About.com |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090204132723/http://video.about.com/coffeetea/How-to-Brew-a-Cup-of-Tea.htm |archive-date=2009-02-04 }}</ref>

===Alternative use===
====Quick water imbibition====
Water [[imbibition]] takes half the time for material that floats with half its area above the water surface when they are submerged with an infuser.{{huh|date=March 2025}}

Seeds are often pre-treated before sowing in order to verify that they will sprout. [[Imbibition]] of water through the membrane of the seed shell is the first step in the [[germination]] process in most seeds. Seeds can be submerged with an infuser, including [[Scarification (botany)#Hot water|hot water scarification]] treatment for tolerant species. Seeds can be weighed with a milligram [[Weighing scale|scale]] before and after they have been submerged to find out when they don't need to be exposed to more water imbibition. Floating seeds can be inspected when they have to sink inside mesh infusers submerged in transparent containers by shaking them. Seeds who don't absorb water will not germinate and must be modified with further [[Scarification_(botany)|scarification]].{{cn|date=March 2025}}

Also, hot water treatment at 90&nbsp;°C for 90 seconds followed by dip in cold water for 30 seconds can be an effective seed decontamination method against [[escherichia coli]] O157:H7 and [[salmonella]].<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Bari |first1=ML |last2=Inatsu |first2=Y |last3=Isobe |first3=S |last4=Kawamoto |first4=S |title=Hot water treatments to inactivate Escherichia coli O157:H7 and Salmonella in mung bean seeds. |journal=Journal of Food Protection |date=April 2008 |volume=71 |issue=4 |pages=830–4 |doi=10.4315/0362-028x-71.4.830 |pmid=18468042|doi-access=free }}</ref>

==Types==

===Ball===
[[File:Teelöffel.jpg|thumb|Tea-making spoons]]

Ball infusers are removed along with the tea leaves from the pot.

====Snap ball====
[[File:Snap ball tea strainer.jpg|right|thumb|A snap ball tea strainer.]]

Snap ball tea strainers are automatically sealed with the force of the end of the handle that is circulated like a [[spring (device)|spring]]. The spring handle requires more metal to manufacture, so they are usually a bit more expensive than regular infuser balls.

The handle in snap ball tea strainers make them more practical:
* They can be used as a [[spoon]] to swirl solutions that will dissolve their content faster than tea infusers without a handle.
* Air inside a snap ball infuser can easily be eliminated by shaking the handle once it has been put into liquid, to make sure everything inside the ball becomes submerged.

===Shut-off infusers===
Shut-off infusers<ref>{{cite web|title=Patented terminology|url=http://www.bonjourproducts.com/cs_aboutus.html|publisher=BonJour Products/Meyer Manufacturing|access-date=23 May 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130525073452/http://www.bonjourproducts.com/cs_aboutus.html|archive-date=25 May 2013}}</ref> are left in the pot after the brewing process is complete.

====Alternatives====

=====French press=====
While not common, a [[French press]] may be used as a tea infuser. However, most teas are infused only for a limited time and then removed from the water so that the drink does not become bitter.<ref name="Zijderveld"/>

In ''[[gongfu tea|gōngfu chá]]'' (功夫茶), a modern method of infusing tea in China, tea can be infused through a ''gàiwǎn'' (盖碗), a tea pot (茶壶) or a ''gōngdào bēi'' (公道杯).<ref>{{cite web|title=Modern Gongfu Cha infusion|url=https://www.gout-cha.com/pages/our-teas/infuser.php|publisher=Goût Thé|access-date=13 March 2022 |language=fr}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[Tea culture]]
* [[Melitta 401]] and [[Melitta 402]] tea filters

{{Commons category|Tea infusers}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

{{Clear}}
{{Teas}}

[[Category:Teaware]]