Cooking with tea leaves

[Puk]

Dessert edition!

So I spontaneously decided to add crushed Dongfangmeiren oolong (because of its famous honey fragrance and sweet body) to the cobbler part of an apple cobbler (substituting honey for sugar too). Anyway, it turned out good. Good enough that I made a separate cobbler batch as just cookies. The oolong cookies were subtle (black dish), the leaves getting a nice chewy texture to otherwise dry crumbles. I'm thinking the tea needs a wetter mixture, so the next experiment was to steam a pile of apples into a simmering sauce, and again added crushed Dongfangmeiren oolong leaves at the end. I also did this with Asian pears separately.

dessert.jpg (32.23 KiB) Viewed 3046 times

- Oolong apple sauce is interesting! (green bowl) The apples overpower most of the flavor but you get it in the fragrant aftertaste, especially after the apples have cooled. The tea sharpens the sweetness, admittedly almost overmuch.
- Oolong pear sauce is the most obvious. (grey bowl) The oolong was a beautiful bouquet of classic honey fragrance, however, it made the pear sauce super and overly sweet though it was obviously not a sugar sweetness. Maybe I will freeze it to lessen the sweetness but then I will probably lose the honey tones. Or I will make it into an agar jelly/jello. *brainstorming
- Notes: crush the leaves in the sauces because they are bitter to chew on. Although in baking, leave leaves whole for chewy texture.

I've seen a few other threads on here about cooking with tea. I'd love to see more, if anyone feels like sharing.

Icecream: http://www.teachat.com/viewtopic.php?f= ... 6&p=257098
Gazpacho soup: http://www.teachat.com/viewtopic.php?f= ... 0&p=244803
Noodles/omelette/rice: http://www.teachat.com/viewtopic.php?f= ... 6&p=236519

[Puk]

Oh, doh. Tea eggs. Right in my avatar.

Lapsang Souchang Tea Eggs
-Hardboil the eggs for about 5 minutes, remove and give them a cold dip.
-Crack the shells by smacking them with a spoon, but do not remove shells.
-In a separate pot, add:
~2 tbsp Lapsang Souchang (or any black tea really)
~2 tbsp soysauce
3-4 star anise
tsp cloves
2" cinnamon stick
water, enough to cover the eggs
cracked eggs
-Bring the mixture to a boil and then reduce to simmer
-Simmer eggs in this mixture for about 2 hrs

You can eat them after 2 hrs, but it's better to turn off the fire, and leave them to soak overnight (for the flavor to permeate the yolk).

Here's what they should look like after you peel em:


I don't eat meat anymore so I can't say personally, but I think Lapsang Souchang would do amazingly in the traditional claypot braised pork/thịt kho kind of dishes:
http://wanderingchopsticks.blogspot.com ... -chua.html

Anyone want to guinea pig a bbq sauce? =P

[茶藝-TeaArt08]

Puk,


Wow...inspiring. I was recently met a friend to surf in San Francisco and afterwards was taken by my friend to a Burmese restaurant. On their menu is a tea leaf salad. The restaurant travels to Burma each year to buy the tea leaves used in the salad. The tea leaves are then fermented and served, stirred into, a bed of salad greens with nuts, dried chick peas, and a few other ingredients. The flavor was amazing. I'm told it is one of the most popular dishes on the menu...really great.

Each year in Taiwan my wife makes a habit of devouring plenty of tea eggs...I really enjoy the scent of tea eggs!

Blessings!

[Poseidon]

I have always wondered what teas would be good in dishes. The most I have done was make a little "salad" of sorts with spent gyokuro leaves with a little soy sauce. It was nice with a side of white rice.

Do you use spent leaves? If not, does the tea give the dish a strong flavor?

[Puk]

Not spent leaves. I have no idea what to do with spent leaves

The most I have done was make a little "salad" of sorts with spent gyokuro leaves with a little soy sauce.

Do you pickle them in the soysauce or just sprinkle on top? What's the flavor like?

I'm munching on some green tea Kit Kats just now. And there's always jasmine rice. Anyone want to make a pot of gyukuro rice? I imagine it'd be nutty.

The tea leaves are then fermented and served, stirred into, a bed of salad greens with nuts, dried chick peas, and a few other ingredients

Lahpet! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lahpet

The fermenting of the leaves also sounds like the process used to pickle kimchi. Ginger, garlic, scallion, chilli and salt.

[Puk]

Read this randomly, while searching for something else. Placing it here for the record.
http://www.nytimes.com/1989/02/01/garde ... h-tea.html

"... tea is most frequently used for smoking poultry."
"the smoking technique originated as a way to preserve foods in the warmer provinces of Sichuan, Hunan and Hubei."

"wok is lined with aluminum foil and in it are placed the tea leaves and, usually, some sugar. Some recipes also include raw rice with the tea leaves. Star anise, dried tangerine peel or cinnamon sticks may also be included for flavor. Whole duck, chicken or squab that has been steamed or poached in an aromatic broth is set on a rack over the tea mixture. The wok is covered tightly. Within minutes after the heat is turned on the tea mixture begins to smoke, seasoning the food and deepening its color.
After 10 to 15 minutes, the heat can be turned off and the food left in the wok to cool."

"Occasionally tea leaves are used for stir-frying. A specialty of Hangzhou in southern China is stir-fried shrimp seasoned with fresh green dragon well tea leaves."

"She also uses steeped black tea in sesame paste when making sesame noodles as well as in marinades for barbecuing."


And a recipe for Tie Guanyin panfried oysters, (you deepfry the leaves o_O)
http://www.chinesefood-recipes.com/chin ... recipe.php

[Poseidon]

Not spent leaves. I have no idea what to do with spent leaves

The most I have done was make a little "salad" of sorts with spent gyokuro leaves with a little soy sauce.

Do you pickle them in the soysauce or just sprinkle on top? What's the flavor like?

I'm munching on some green tea Kit Kats just now. And there's always jasmine rice. Anyone want to make a pot of gyukuro rice? I imagine it'd be nutty.

I would say it was similar to seaweed. Gyokuro has a sweet/umami flavor that compliments rice/salt well. Its not a strong flavor due to extracting the most out of the expensive leaves but its still a nice treat. I would kill for a big bowl of gyokuro rice!!! Ive never thought about making a large batch... Looks like I know what to do with this sample bag I just got!!!

PS. Green tea kit kats are amazing. Try the green tea pocky!

[Puk]

PS. Green tea kit kats are amazing. Try the green tea pocky!

Way ahead of you. I think I've sampled everything tea related in the candy aisle. <3 Big kids, that's all we are.
BTW, I hope you'll report back on the gyukoro rice.

[Tead Off]

Puk,


Wow...inspiring. I was recently met a friend to surf in San Francisco and afterwards was taken by my friend to a Burmese restaurant. On their menu is a tea leaf salad. The restaurant travels to Burma each year to buy the tea leaves used in the salad. The tea leaves are then fermented and served, stirred into, a bed of salad greens with nuts, dried chick peas, and a few other ingredients. The flavor was amazing. I'm told it is one of the most popular dishes on the menu...really great.

Each year in Taiwan my wife makes a habit of devouring plenty of tea eggs...I really enjoy the scent of tea eggs!

Blessings!

Is it the restaurant on Clement St. that you were taken to?

In Burma, many restaurants serve a plate of pickled tea leaves as an appetizer, usually free with the meal. It's hard to leave that stuff alone as I love fermented foods.

[茶藝-TeaArt08]

Is it the restaurant on Clement St. that you were taken to?

In Burma, many restaurants serve a plate of pickled tea leaves as an appetizer, usually free with the meal. It's hard to leave that stuff alone as I love fermented foods.

Indeed! Nice call! I ate the salad at Burma Star on Clement. It was great! Myself and two friends polished the plate clean...not to mention the rest is the menu is great as well. Each time I have been over there a line forms out the door of people waiting to get a seat. On a different day after surfing I met some friends at Burma Star and then headed over to Green Apple books and got lost in book browsing for four hours. That street is full of delights!

Blessings!

[Tead Off]

Is it the restaurant on Clement St. that you were taken to?

In Burma, many restaurants serve a plate of pickled tea leaves as an appetizer, usually free with the meal. It's hard to leave that stuff alone as I love fermented foods.

Indeed! Nice call! I ate the salad at Burma Star on Clement. It was great! Myself and two friends polished the plate clean...not to mention the rest is the menu is great as well. Each time I have been over there a line forms out the door of people waiting to get a seat. On a different day after surfing I met some friends at Burma Star and then headed over to Green Apple books and got lost in book browsing for four hours. That street is full of delights!

Blessings!

I used to frequent both places when I lived in S.F. You'll find the food is quite different in Myanmar.

There is another Burmese restaurant on California St. called Mandalay. Try it and compare.

[kyarazen]

in fujian there are some restaurants that specialize in cooking with tea leaves, i just watched a CNTV program where they tested five tea makers/judges on their ability to identify the tea used in the dishes.

recently i made some "鼠壳糕" a traditional chaozhou snack which required a rather rare ingredient for the pastry skin. instead I decided to substitute in some heavy roasted TKY that i had ground down using kyocera's green tea miller and it turned out surprisingly good, subtle aroma that doesnt steal the lime light



it appears that tea in chinese cooking can either be used to lead and augment the main flavour or to serve as a nice contrasting agent.

[Puk]

Huh, I can't figure out what that is kyarazen. I can't find anything in Eng either. What is it?

[kyarazen]

Huh, I can't figure out what that is kyarazen. I can't find anything in Eng either. What is it?

its a type of snack/pastry!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_tortoise_cake

[Puk]

Huh, I can't figure out what that is kyarazen. I can't find anything in Eng either. What is it?

its a type of snack/pastry!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Red_tortoise_cake

That is too adorable...the little tortoise feet!
How do you accomplish the texture on the shell? Did you use a mold?

I'm being pestered to make pandan steamed rice cakes (with coconut milk 'sauce'), and now you've got me thinking to try incorporating tea leaves with it. Any thoughts on what matches pandan and wouldn't get lost in the coconut? Or maybe I will infuse it into the coconut milk...