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    Home » Drinks

    How Long To Microwave Water To Make Tea With Tea Bags?

    Last Updated : May 21, 2025. This post may contain affiliate links. As an Amazon affiliate I earn from qualifying purchases.

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    If you wonder how long to microwave water for tea or how long to put tea bags in hot water (water heated in microwave), read this post to find out how to make the perfect tea with the help of a microwave oven! In fact, it is so easy to make a cup of tea using water heated in the microwave.

    microwave tea

    Keep in mind that we only recommend heating the water in the microwave for making tea. We do not microwave tea bags. We add the tea bags only once the water is heated because we do not recommend microwaving tea bags due to safety concerns.

    If you are in a hurry see the answer for your questions here:

    Contents hide
    1 how long to microwave water to make tea
    2 how long to put tea bags in water heated in microwave
    3 more posts on tea & coffee:
    4 how to make tea with tea bags?
    5 can you heat up water for tea in the microwave oven?
    6 how to make a cup of tea using water heated in microwave oven?
    7 ingredients used to make tea
    8 step by step instructions with photos
    9 more posts on easy microwave recipes:
    10 Microwave Tea - Black Tea, Milk Tea, Iced Tea
    10.1 Ingredients
    10.1.1 Optional ingredients to make sweetened milk tea:
    10.2 Instructions
    10.2.1 to add milk and sugar to make milk tea (optional)
    10.2.2 to make iced tea (optional)
    10.3 Notes
    10.4 Nutrition

    how long to microwave water to make tea

    If you need the tea to be served hot, you may heat the water for about 1 minute and 30 seconds in the microwave oven in a microwave safe cup.

    how long to put tea bags in water heated in microwave

    Once the water is heated in the microwave oven, you can place the tea bags in the mug or cup with hot water and let it steep for about 3 minutes or follow tea package directions.

    Black tea usually has caffeine but the caffeine content may depend on the kind of tea you are using.

    There are also many types of teas without caffeine content available in the market.

    more posts on tea & coffee:

    • how to make coffee without coffee maker
    • honey green tea
    • how to make chamomile tea taste better
    • how to make green tea taste better
    • iced peach green tea lemonade
    • hokkaido milk tea
    • pumpkin spice chai latte
    • orange peel tea
    • hot chocolate milk coffee
    • lemon coffee
    • instant pumpkin spice coffee latte
    • iced french vanilla coffee latte drink
    • instant cold coffee
    • coffee ice cream milkshake
    • coffee banana milkshake
    • apple cinnamon coffee drink

    You can read more about the different types of teas here.

    how to make tea with tea bags?

    You just need black tea bags and heated water to make simple, plain black tea.

    If you want to make green tea, just use green tea bags in place of black tea bags to steep the tea or if you want to make chamomile tea you can simply use chamomile tea bags.

    If you want any other variety of tea, just use the proper tea bags for making the tea.

    We first learn how long to heat water in the microwave to prepare tea, then we will see how we can use tea bags to make the tea.

    microwave tea

    can you heat up water for tea in the microwave oven?

    If you wonder if you can heat up water in the microwave to make tea (or even coffee), the answer is yes!

    If you heat up water in microwave (following the instructions in recipe) you can easily make a cup of black tea or green tea without even having to turn on the stove to make tea in saucepan.

    Keep in mind that we are talking about making one or two cups of tea here, if you want to make large batch of tea for more people the stove top method is more easier.

    This is the most easy method to make tea, than making tea in saucepan especially if you have only one cup of tea to make.

    Same with most kinds of teas, so if you know how long to heat water in the microwave to make tea, you can most definitely make a cup of many of of your favorite teas.

    This is especially helpful if you do not want to make a large batch of tea, but you only want one or two cups of tea.

    Note that we only heat the water in the microwave to make the tea, in which the tea bags are steeped.

    Do not microwave tea bags when you make the tea, and this is very important as the tea bags may catch fire if you microwave the tea bags so it is not recommended. Also, this is mostly mentioned in popular tea packages as well.

    You can heat the water in the microwave using a microwave safe mug or cup and steep the tea in the hot water, but make sure you do not microwave the tea bags.

    how long to microwave water for tea

    So let us read in detail about making tea in microwave and most specifically how long to microwave water for tea.

    In general, you just need to heat the water for about one minute time in the microwave using a microwave safe mug or cup to make the tea.

    microwave tea

    If you need the tea to be very hot, you may heat the water in the microwave for about one minute and 30 seconds. Once the water is heated, you can place the tea bags in the mug or cup with hot water and let it steep for about 3 minutes or follow tea package directions.

    Stir in milk & sweetener if desired. It is that easy & simple to make a cup of tea using water heated in the microwave oven!

    In this post, I will give a simple recipe to help you make the perfect tea using water heated in the microwave ove. So here you go!

    how to make a cup of tea using water heated in microwave oven?

    To make tea using water heated in the microwave, you may use the below ingredients and follow the below directions.

    ingredients used to make tea

    • water 1 cup
    • tea bags 1 or 2 - according to preference (use two tea bags if making milk tea)

    Optional ingredients to make sweetened milk tea:

    • whole milk ¼ cup (may use little more if needed. May also use heavy cream or coffee creamer)
    • sugar 2 tablespoons (adjust to taste, may use another sweetener)
    • ice cubes 3 to 4 or as needed to make iced tea, if desired

    step by step instructions with photos

    Step 1 - Add the water to a microwave safe mug or cup.

    water

    Step 2 - Heat the water in the microwave oven for about one minute.

    Step 3 - Carefully take the hot water mug outside and place the tea bags in the hot water.

    tea bags in water

    Step 4 - Steep the tea for about 3 minutes or follow tea package directions.

    If you place the tea bags in the water for a long time, the tea may taste bitter, especially if you are planning to enjoy it as plain black tea without sugar. I usually just steep the tea for about 3 minutes when I am making plain black tea.

    black tea

    Step 5 - Once the tea is steeped, discard the tea bags. If you are making black tea without adding milk or sugar, it is not a good idea to squeeze the tea bags as it may cause bitter taste.

    If you just wanted a cup of plain black tea, now it is ready so you can enjoy your tea!

    black tea

    If you think the tea has cooled more than your preference, you can heat the tea in the microwave (in a microwave safe cup of mug) for another 30 seconds and then stir well using a spoon so the heat is evenly distributed, enjoy.

    to add milk and sugar to make milk tea (optional)

    Step 6 - Add milk and sugar to the prepared black tea and heat in the microwave (in microwave safe mug or cup) for another one more minute.

    Step 7 - Carefully take the hot cup of tea & stir well using a spoon so the sugar will dissolve in the hot tea. Enjoy the easy, simple & delicious milk tea!

    to make iced tea (optional)

    Allow the tea to cool down to room temperature.

    Chill the tea in refrigerator.

    Once the tea is cooled enough, add ice cubes to a glass cup and pour the chilled tea over the ice. Enjoy!

    more posts on easy microwave recipes:

    If you like easy microwave recipes, also try this easy simple microwave oatmeal, apple cinnamon oatmeal in microwave, microwave baked yukon gold potatoes, easy moist chocolate mug cake etc!

    You might also like to see my post on how to microwave oatmeal without boiling over for tips on making perfect microwave oatmeal!

    Below you can get the simple, easy tea recipe in detail.

    tea
    Print Recipe
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    Microwave Tea - Black Tea, Milk Tea, Iced Tea

    Making tea from water heated in the microwave is quick and simple! See here how you can easily make a cup of plain black tea, milk tea or iced tea using the microwave method.
    Prep Time3 minutes mins
    Cook Time2 minutes mins
    Total Time5 minutes mins
    Course: Drinks
    Cuisine: American
    Keyword: how long to microwave water for tea, how to make tea with tea bags, tea
    Servings: 1
    Calories: 130kcal
    Author: Parvathy

    Ingredients

    • 1 cup water
    • 1 tea bag use two tea bags if making milk tea

    Optional ingredients to make sweetened milk tea:

    • ¼ cup whole milk may use little more if needed. May also use heavy cream or coffee creamer
    • 2 tablespoons sugar adjust to taste, may use another sweetener
    • 3 ice cubes or as needed to make iced tea if desired

    Instructions

    • Add the water to a microwave safe mug or cup.
    • Heat the water in the microwave oven for about one minute.
    • Carefully take the hot water mug outside and place the tea bags in the hot water.
    • Steep the tea for about 3 minutes or follow tea package directions. If you place the tea bags in the water for a long time, the tea may taste bitter, especially if you are planning to enjoy it as plain black tea without sugar. I usually just steep the tea for about 3 minutes if I am making plain black tea.
    • Once the tea is steeped, discard the tea bags. If you are making black tea without adding milk or sugar, it is not a good idea to squeeze the tea bags as it may cause bitter taste.
    • If you just wanted a cup of plain black tea, now it is ready so you can enjoy your tea! If you think the tea has cooled more than your preference, you can heat the tea in the microwave (in microwave safe cup of mug) for another 30 seconds and then stir well using a spoon so the heat is evenly distributed, enjoy.

    to add milk and sugar to make milk tea (optional)

    • Add milk and sugar to the prepared black tea and heat in the microwave (in microwave safe mug or cup) for another one more minute.
    • Carefully take the hot cup of tea & stir well using a spoon so the sugar will dissolve in the hot tea.
    • Enjoy the easy, simple & delicious milk tea!

    to make iced tea (optional)

    • Allow the tea to cool down to room temperature.
    • Chill the tea in refrigerator.
    • Once the tea is cooled enough, add ice cubes to a glass cup and pour the chilled tea over the ice. Enjoy!

    Notes

    Keep in mind that we only recommend heating the water in the microwave for making tea. We do not microwave tea bags. We add the tea bags only once the water is heated because we do not recommend microwaving tea bags due to safety concerns.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 130kcal | Carbohydrates: 27g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 2g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 6mg | Sodium: 40mg | Potassium: 81mg | Sugar: 27g | Vitamin A: 99IU | Calcium: 78mg | Iron: 1mg

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    Comments

    1. Nancy E Minkel says

      December 21, 2022 at 8:36 pm

      I've been microwaving my tea for over 40 years. Fill a mug (12 water,), add the tea bag and microwave for 2 minutes at high power (1000 watt oven) Remove from oven, let it sit 30 sec. pr more, remove bag and drink as soon as it is cool enough. Super easy, and I've NEVER had a tea bag catch on fire. Most bags today do not have metal staple, just string slotted into a paper label.

      Reply
      • Recipe Garden says

        May 17, 2023 at 9:51 am

        Thank you for sharing your tips on this!!

        Reply

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