Ewan McGregor Is Very, Very Specific About How Tea Should Be Made

If you dream of inviting Ewan McGregor over for tea one day, you're about to have a serious advantage. While being interviewed at the 2023 New York Comic Con, the "Star Wars" and "Moulin Rouge" star was careful not to talk about any projects he's signed onto out of respect for the ongoing SAG-AFTRA strike. That doesn't mean, however, that he wasn't an open book about some other things — like his tea preferences, for instance. During his interview, for which a Mashed employee was present, the interviewer commented that they didn't know that McGregor's tea recipe would be "the hottest take" of the conversation and, while we have to agree, we're glad it was.

According to McGregor, you can't just make your tea any old way and expect perfection. To start, the actor explained, "You have to heat the pot." Indeed, preheating the teapot or even the teacup you're pouring your tea into does actually have a scientific explanation; it prevents any significant change in temperature before you start to infuse your tea. So, some aspects of McGregor's tea recipe aren't just about his preference — they're backed by science. We wouldn't expect any less wisdom from Obi-Wan Kenobi, himself. From the way you treat your teapot to how long you steep the tea (and even how you add your milk), there are very specific steps to making the perfect cup of tea.

To perfectly heat the pot, McGregor advises, "You get the boiling water, and you pour it in the teapot. Rinse it around to heat the pot," he said, miming moving the teapot in a circular motion. "And then, you pour it out." Next, McGregor explained, "You put your tea bags in, and then you add the water." 

When it comes to steeping time, everybody's got an opinion, and McGregor is no different. "You have to leave it for more than three minutes," he insisted, adding, "less than three minutes, you get a good color, but you don't get a good taste. But, after three minutes, you get both. And, that's what you're after." 

Another requirement for a great taste, according to McGregor, is milk. While he thinks adding milk to herbal tea is strange, he revealed he always adds milk to his black tea and channels his Scottish roots when pouring it. "In a proper British cup of tea, you put the milk in first — a little splash of milk and then the tea, and I think that's the way that it's best," he said. While some people also add sweeteners to their tea, it isn't for McGregor, who told the interviewer, "I don't do sugar or honey, no. It's sweet enough, you know?" 

Sounds like the perfect cup of tea as far as we're concerned.