Black Tea substitute

Best substitute

Another black tea variety

Use the same amount as the black tea you are replacing

Best for Persian and Turkish tea

Close match

Assam, Ceylon, Kenyan, Darjeeling, Keemun, English Breakfast, Earl Grey or a plain supermarket teabag are all fully oxidised Camellia sinensis and are interchangeable in almost every recipe.

Other black tea substitutes

Ranked, with the exact amount to use

2Oolong tea
Different taste
Use the same amount brewed about a minute longer
Partly oxidised, so it sits between green and black.
What changes
It brews to a golden brown and behaves much like black tea in the pot.
Best for
brines and poaching liquids, tea-smoked duck or chicken, cakes and custards, iced tea
Noticeably less tannic and more floral, toasty and honeyed. A tea-brined chicken made with oolong tastes subtler and rounder, and a tea cake made with it is less bracing and more perfumed. Because it is gentler, it does not cut through fat and richness the way strong black tea does, so in a very rich dish you may want half again as much.
3Green tea
Different taste
Use the same amount brewed at about 80 C for 2 minutes
Same plant, unoxidised.
What changes
Perfectly usable as long as you respect the brewing temperature, since boiling water scalds green tea and makes it harshly bitter within seconds.
Best for
light poaching liquids, iced tea, delicate cakes and ice creams, when you want less caffeine than black tea
Pale yellow-green rather than deep amber, and vegetal and grassy where black tea is malty. This matters more than it sounds: tea eggs, tea-smoked dishes and anything relying on tea for a brown tint come out much lighter and look undercooked. Flavour-wise it reads fresh and slightly savoury rather than robust.
4Rooibos
Different taste
Use the same amount and it can be boiled hard
The best caffeine-free stand-in.
What changes
A South African shrub rather than a tea plant, it brews deep red-brown and, unlike real tea, does not turn bitter no matter how long you steep it.
Best for
caffeine-free versions of anything, colour in cakes, poaching liquids and iced drinks, evening drinking, long simmering
Naturally sweet, woody and slightly vanilla-like, with a beautiful red colour that makes it excellent for tinting. The gap is tannin: rooibos has very little, so it will not give a brine its firming astringency or cut richness the way black tea does, and a rooibos cake tastes softer and sweeter. It also cannot be used to make kombucha.
5Hibiscus or dried sour tea
Different taste
Use the same amount for colour, less for flavour
Brews to a spectacular deep crimson and is naturally tart, so it is the right choice when you want dramatic colour in a cold drink.
What changes
Best for
iced drinks and coolers, colour in syrups and jellies, poaching pears or plums, caffeine-free refreshers
The flavour is nothing like tea. Hibiscus is sharply tart, cranberry-like and fruity, so it brings acidity where black tea brings bitterness, and it will change the balance of anything sweet. Excellent as its own thing, misleading as a swap. Never use it where the recipe wants tannin, such as a firming brine.
6Strong brewed coffee or instant tea powder
Different taste
half the amount for coffee, 1:1 for instant tea
For recipes where tea is supplying nothing but brown colour and a bitter edge, these do the job with almost no effort.
What changes
Best for
dark cakes, gingerbread and fruit loaves, glazes and barbecue sauces, braising liquids, soaking dried fruit
Coffee is recognisably coffee, and much more assertive, so use half as much and never in a delicate custard, a light poaching syrup or anything meant to taste of tea. Instant tea powder is genuinely tea and dissolves instantly, though it tastes flatter and slightly stewed. Neither belongs in a glass of Persian chai.

What is Black Tea?

Black Tea is fully oxidised leaf from the Camellia sinensis plant, brewed to a brisk amber-to-red infusion, and used in cooking for its tannic astringency, gentle bitterness and brown colour rather than for sweetness or body.

Cooking tips

One level teaspoon of loose leaf is about equal to one teabag and makes roughly six ounces of tea. When a recipe calls for a cup of strong tea, use two teaspoons or two bags per cup rather than one, because flour, sugar and fat all dull tea flavour badly.
Steeping longer than about five minutes does not make tea stronger, it makes it bitter, because tannins keep extracting long after the flavour compounds have finished. If you want a more concentrated brew, use more leaf rather than more time.
For Persian tea, brew a very strong concentrate in a small pot sitting on top of a kettle of simmering water, then dilute it glass by glass with hot water so everyone can choose their own strength. Keeping the leaves off direct heat is the whole method, since boiling black tea leaves makes it harsh.
Kombucha needs true Camellia sinensis, which means black, green or oolong tea and nothing else. Rooibos, hibiscus, peppermint and other herbal infusions do not feed the culture properly and can weaken or kill it, so do not improvise substitutions in an active ferment. If you are following a tested fermentation recipe, keep to the tea it specifies.
Tea used in a brine or a cure contributes tannin and colour, but it is not what makes the brine safe. Do not alter the salt, sugar or acid levels in a tested curing, pickling or canning recipe in order to fit a tea substitution in, and consult the National Center for Home Food Preservation for anything you intend to shelf-store.

Frequently asked questions

How much loose leaf black tea equals one teabag?

About one level teaspoon, which is roughly two to three grams and makes a single six-ounce cup. Larger-leaf teas such as Darjeeling are fluffier, so a teaspoon weighs less and you may want a heaped one. For cooking, where you usually want a strong concentrate, double it: two teaspoons or two bags per cup of water.

Can I use green tea instead of black tea?

Yes, with adjustments. Brew it at around 80 C for two minutes rather than with boiling water, or it becomes harsh and grassy. Expect a pale yellow-green liquid with a vegetal flavour rather than deep amber and malty, which means anything relying on tea for brown colour, such as tea eggs or tea-smoked poultry, will come out much lighter than intended.

Can I use herbal tea for kombucha instead of black tea?

No, not as the base. A kombucha culture depends on nutrients found in real tea from the Camellia sinensis plant, so it needs black, green or oolong tea. Rooibos, peppermint, chamomile and fruit infusions do not sustain it and repeated brews on herbal tea alone will weaken the culture. You can flavour the finished kombucha with herbal infusions at the second stage instead.

Can I just use water instead of tea?

In a brine, a braise or a poaching liquid, yes, and the dish will still work. You lose the brown colour and the slight bitterness that cuts richness, so it will taste a little flatter and look paler, and a tea egg will simply be a boiled egg. In a cake or a drink where tea is the named flavour, substituting water removes the point of the recipe, so use another tea instead.

Is Earl Grey the same as black tea?

Earl Grey is a black tea scented with bergamot oil, so it is black tea plus a strong citrus perfume. It substitutes freely in sweet applications, where the bergamot is usually a bonus, and it is excellent in cakes, custards and poached fruit. Avoid it in savoury brines, tea eggs or plain Persian chai, where that floral citrus note tastes out of place.

Related substitutes

More beverages substitutes

Black Tea substitute

Other black tea substitutes

2Oolong tea

3Green tea

4Rooibos

5Hibiscus or dried sour tea

6Strong brewed coffee or instant tea powder