Tea for Food?

For lovers of Western cuisine, wine is an indispensable ingredient for many dishes, particularly when sauces are part of the assemblage. The earthiness of red wine or the fresh zing of white wine can add richness and complexity to a dish. Wine binds with the ingredients, lending them new nuances and flavours. While wine competes with other alcoholic beverages in the Western kitchen, other beverages seem to be oft ignored. It is time to explore another elixir that combines complexity, subtlety, and culinary decalcomania – tea.

What qualifies a beverage to be used as a cooking ingredient? Complexity, I think, is key, as it changes the dynamic of how the ingredients interact. For instance orange juice is oft used in Caribbean cuisine, adding a lovely tropical freshness. The food, however, is bold, and frequently heavy, with the fresh sweetness of the juice softening the brusque flavours of chilli, starch, and meat. Western food, particularly Northern European food, can be heavy, but it infrequently uses flavours that grab you by the neck and give you a good shaking. The occasionally happens in Mediterranean food, perhaps a result of its warmer climes, but even here, simplicity and restraint are the rules of the day. Herbs – as opposed to spices - and savoury liquids ground dishes, resulting in a steady palate of flavours.

Wine is indeed an extremely complex beverage, but when exposed to heat much of the complexity is burned away to the winds of the earth, never to reveal their unique notes on the first taste. Tea, on the other hand, while not native to the West – though certainly consumed there - is a brewed beverage that stands up to the trauma of cooking. Like wine, there are countless varieties of tea and the concept of terroir is equally important for this leaf of many characters. While it lacks the fruit of wine, it maintains an earthiness, and with some green teas even a freshness, that melds well with the herbaceous qualities of Western cuisine. Indeed its qualities work an even greater magic with Western cuisine infused with the spirit of East Asia. How then is this leaf, this beverage of many flavours, best applied to our kitchens today?

Tea is relatively subtle compared to many ingredients in our cupboard or larder. For this reason, it is necessary to ensure the leaves are properly infused to extract the desired flavours. This does not require the arduous precision some teas demand for maximum drinking enjoyment – after all the flavours are being imparted on provisions, not our tongues – at least not immediately.

To use as a delightful base in a marinade – green tea and ginger work beautifully – simply brew the tea in the best fashion for the particular variety. For instance, though you need not be overly zealous about the temperature of the brewing water, do not over steep, particularly for green tea, as you do not want that bitterness passed onto the food you will eat. I would, however, suggest longer marinating times when using tea as a base, a minimum of at least three hours. Marinating at room temperature for the first few hours will also aid in flavour extraction.

Brewed tea is a beautiful poaching medium – the soft notes of its profile seem to become concentrated as they swirl with the steam, flavouring the dish from both below and above. Should you use tea to poach a dish – this works wonderfully with fish, particularly when it has been resting in a tea marinade - ensure you have brewed the tea beforehand. Subjecting tea to the cooking process as a way of infusing its characteristic will not result in satisfactory results.

Dry leaves added to a consommé are an ideal way to add richness. Mushrooms work particularly well with Earl Grey and Oolong teas. Pure black teas can be a bit too tannic and harsh, so I would generally avoid a basic Assam, though Darjeeling can be subtle enough not to overpower the rich earthiness of the mushrooms. When using tea in a soup or consommé, be sure to add them in the last phase before straining or serving so the flavour profile remains fresh and vibrant, not sullen and brusque. You may also use tea in sauces similar to the way you would use it in a consommé. The tremendous versatility of sauces allow for variety of teas to be used. Like wine pairing, try to match the flavour profile of the tea with that of the dish it will be served with. Black teas are ideal with beef, rich oolong teas with game, and green or white teas with fish (firm fleshed). When executed properly, the tea will add a lovely perfume to your consommé or sauce.

Smoking is a technique seldom used in most kitchens today, but for those who are blessed with a smoker (and the space to use one!), lightly curing meat, poultry, or fish with tea can add a wonderful complexity to an already intriguing technique. Similar matching guidelines should be considered here as mentioned concerning sauces. I find the few times I have smoked fish or meat with tea that the flavour was more restrained than if wood had been used. Try not to erase this subtle beauty by overpowering with copious bundles of herbs during the cooking process. While I have not tried it, I would not recommend using a tea smoke to fully cure any animal product.

Marinating, poaching, and smoking – all three are integral techniques to Western cuisine, and in each method there is a place for tea. Throw in a sauce and it’s the tango. Given the scarce use of tea as a cooking ingredient, there are likely a host of other methods and dishes where it could be used. Do not fear experimentation – it can only lead to new insights. With an open mind and full tea cabinet, you will be well on your way to adding endless new flavour profiles to your daily meals.

A green tea marinade for salmon:

1. Brew approximately 250ml of green tea – I find Sencha works best – with water just off the boil for approximately 2 minutes. Allow the tea to cool until warm.
2. Combine the tea in the marinating vessel with a few pinches of freshly chopped ginger.
3. Add a good splash of Mirin, a Japanese sweet cooking wine.
4. Let the ingredients get to know each other, perhaps with a gentle stir or two, and then slowly place the salmon in the marinade.
5. Marinate at room temperature for two hours. I recommend a minimum of one additional hour in the fridge, though for best results marinate for at least six more.
This salmon shows beautifully when poached with freshly brewed green tea, a splash of teriyaki sauce, a sprinkling of seaweed, a small knob of butter, and dash of sugar.