If you want even more ways to enjoy your favorite tea, you'll be glad to know that tea bags can give your soups and sauces a boost of flavor. Infusing complementary tones and flavors of tea into your dish can make quite the combination, so once you've picked your tea, here's how to take it from the mug to the dinner plate.

For a creamy sauce, steep tea bags directly into the milk or heavy cream you plan to use, then add to your other ingredients once the dairy is properly infused. For soup, you can simply steep a few tea bags directly in your broth as it cooks, or alternatively, stir finely-ground tea leaves directly into any dry ingredients you use.

Try making an oolong bechamel or rooibos remoulade, or infuse your next yellow curry sauce with some chai. Alse, lemongrass tea is great with pho broth, bai mu dan white tea adds a sweet-savory nuttiness to any vegetable broth, and if you're making a soup with rice or couscous, cook it in tea instead of water.