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'Tea tastes even better' with BBC Traitors star Hannah Fry's 'stirring' method
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'Tea tastes even better' with BBC Traitors star Hannah Fry's 'stirring' method There is a scientific reason behind this why this 'erratic' way works Hannah Fry has said that Brits may look "completely insane" when making their next cup of tea, as one 'erratic' method makes it taste better. The BBC Traitors star previously spoke about the exact method people should be following when mixing their brew. A YouGov poll found that, on average, around a quarter of Brits (24%) take their usual cup...
'Tea tastes even better' with BBC Traitors star Hannah Fry's 'stirring' method
There is a scientific reason behind this why this 'erratic' way works
Hannah Fry has said that Brits may look "completely insane" when making their next cup of tea, as one 'erratic' method makes it taste better. The BBC Traitors star previously spoke about the exact method people should be following when mixing their brew.
A YouGov poll found that, on average, around a quarter of Brits (24%) take their usual cup of tea with added sugar. The findings indicate that of those who do put sugar in their tea, 14% use one teaspoon and 10% use two.
Currently appearing in the latest series of the BBC's Celebrity Traitors, broadcaster and mathematician Professor Hannah Fry claims that those who make their tea this way could notice better taste from more dissolved sugar by following a simple scientific method.
She claims that it is actually a "terrible idea" to stir your tea in a circle to get the added sugar to infuse quickly. Speaking on The Rest Is Science video podcast, which she hosts with American educator and Vsauce creator Michael Stevens, Hannah said: "The sugar will dissolve much better in a turbulent fluid.
Hannah claims: "I stir tea like this. Just do an erratic shape with your teaspoon, you look completely insane." Stevens added: "This is what I do when I need to get salt to dissolve in pasta water."
Generally speaking, tea will taste better if you follow Hannah's method. It prevents sugar from sinking and collecting at the bottom of your mug. This avoids the first few sips tasting more bitter than the very last, which will become a sickeningly sweet sludge.
When fully dissolved, the sucrose molecules in the sugar are evenly distributed throughout the entire mug. Every single sip will taste exactly how you intended it to from start to finish.
What is the science behind this?
When you stir a teaspoon continuously in a smooth circle, you create a neat, predictable whirlpool. Instead of dissolving, the solid sugar crystals get swept up by the current and gather right in the middle at the bottom of the mug (similar to how tea leaves settle).
To dissolve sugar or mix milk efficiently, you want a turbulent flow. This almost chaotic movement is filled with tiny, unpredictable currents with greater force behind it than a gentle stir.
As the liquid collides with itself and with the solid sugar crystals from different angles. This tears the sugar crystals apart and mixes them into the hot water much quicker than a smooth whirlpool ever could.