Brewing Loose Leaf Tea in a Keurig Machine

You may want to check the water temp of your Keurig. I haven’t tried to brew loose leaf using the method you mentioned, but the hot water that comes out of mine is only 192°F. Some models may have an adjustable temperature, but mine doesn’t.

Even more than adjusting for temperature, I’d worry about the steep time. I have a keurig as well, and although I’ve been tempted, I only use it to dispense hot water into a cup with a brewing basket in it.

You know, it might work. The issue is how fast and hot the machine forces it through. I know that there have been some companies that have used espresso machines to make tea. I don’t know how much leaf you need to use though. It might work best with teas that require shorter steeping times but it’s worth experimentation if you have a tea at home you don’t mind wasting a bit of if it doesn’t work out, or until you figure out the settings.

I think that if you buy the premade cups the tea has been crushed so small that it actually goes into your brew. So when the water goes through the cup it is actually picking up some of the tea particles, thus allowing for a longer steet (in your actual cup).

I got the reusable cups as well, just never got around to using them.

I have done this at my grandmother’s and was disappointed with the result. I tried a black tea and a mint tea, neither of which had much flavour since they were so briefly in contact with the water. Mint worked better though, if I packed the K-Cup as full as I could.

I have a regular Keurig machine and use it for a combination of jasmine and Chinese black tea.

I wouldn’t recommend it. Coffee can brew very quickly via pour through method which is why these machines were invented. Tea needs to steep for several minutes in order to extract flavor. The only way I could see it working is if the leaf particles are just as small as coffee, practically a powder.