Making tea on Shabbat -- how it's done

Shabbat Kodesh. It's late at night and before going to sleep, you decide you'd like a glass of hot tea with a slice of cake. A true Shabbat pleasure...

You head over to the hot water urn, but suddenly stop – is there a permissible way to prepare tea on Shabbat?

The answer is yes, it is permissible to prepare a cup of tea on Shabbat, but one must be careful about several points so as not to transgress the prohibition of cooking.

How can tea be prepared on Shabbat?

1. Tea essence should be prepared before Shabbat. Add a number of tea bags to a container or teapot, pour a little boiling water over (just enough t0 cover) and leave to infuse. You'll be left with concentrated tea -- tea essence.

2. On Shabbat, first pour boiling water into a dry cup, then add the tea essence to the water. Add sugar to taste, and enjoy!

3. If one forgot to prepare essence, some authorities permit preparing fresh tea from a tea bag on Shabbat. One may not place a tea bag into a cup of hot water that is at a temperature at which the hand recoils, even if the water has first been poured from the urn into a glass (kli sheni--second vessel). However, some authorities permit pouring hot water from that second vessel into a cup that contains a tea bag, and it is preferable to first add the water and only then the tea bag.

Remember:

1. If you did not prepare tea essence before Shabbat – it is forbidden to prepare it on Shabbat.

2. Do not pour boiling water directly onto the tea essence.

3. The hot water urn is considered the first vessel (kli rishon); the cup into which you pour the water is considered the second vessel (kli sheni). If one transfers the water to another cup this is considered the third vessel (kli shlishi).