To boil in water: boil the glass jar in boiling water for 15 minutes and then let it sit in the hot water when preparing other things

To use oven: Preheat oven to 275 F (135 C). Place the glass jar on a baking tray and put inside the oven for 15 minutes and when it's done "baking", turn off the oven but leave the jar in there until you are ready to use it

Place the tea leaves in a tea pot or a large heat-proof cup. Pour hot water over it and let it steep for about 3 minutes. Drain off the tea liquid and squeeze any excess liquid from the tea by pressing with the back of the spoon. I taste the tea leaves to see if it's too bitter or not. If you think it's too bitter to your taste, pour more boiling water on the tea again and let it steep for another 3 minutes and then squeeze out liquid from tea

Transfer the tea leaves to a food processor, add the spices, herbs, seasonings, and oil. Process into a fine consistency

Use a tong to get the sterilized glass jar out from the water onto a clean kitchen towel to dry the outside and get as much water out as possible. If you clean the jar in the oven, just use a tong to get it out of the oven and it's ready to be used

Transfer the mixture into the sterilized jar using clean utensils. I cover it with a clean coffee filter secure with a rubber band and let it sit at a warm place around 82-90 F to ferment for 7-10 days. I did 7 days

After 7 day, secure the lid on the jar and place this in the refrigerator. It can be kept in the fridge for about a 2-3 weeks or so or keep in the freezer for 3-6 months

The laphet dressing is ready to be used for laphet thoke