Tea drinking is an integral part of Chinese life and the Chinese food experience. Tea has been the chief drink in China since ancient times, and tea drinking has been a custom for almost as long. Tea was popular in the Tang Dynasty. During the Ming and Qing Dynasties prominent officials and eminent people used tea drinking as an occasion to foster friendships and discuss poetry.

Tea is a beverage made by steeping processed leaves, buds or twigs of the tea bush Camellia sinensis in hot water for a few minutes. The processing can include oxidation (fermentation), heating, drying and the addition of other herbs, flowers, spices and fruits.

When picking tea, there is no need to pick too fine leaves, too fine tea leaves are nascent and lack flavour. Leaves which are too green are usually avoided, as they are too old and have lost tenderness and flavour. It is best to pick the leaves which are greenish, roundish and thick. Do not dry them in the sun, rather bake them in a charcoal fire, cool down with a fan then store in container lined with ruo leaves and keep in a high place, because tea relishes warmth and dryness and abhors cold and dampness.

There are four types of true tea: black tea, oolong tea, green tea, and white tea. The term herbal tea usually refers to infusions of fruit or herbs such as rosehip tea, chamomile tea and Jiaogulan that contain no tea leaves. (Alternative terms for herbal tea that avoid the word "tea" are tisane and herbal infusion.) This article is concerned exclusively with preparations and uses of the tea plant Camellia sinensis.

Tea is a natural source of caffeine, theophylline, and antioxidants, but it has almost no fat, carbohydrates, or protein. It has a cooling, slightly bitter and astringent taste. Iced Tea has been popular in North America since the 1904 St. Louis World's Fair.