Combining the Wonderful Worlds of Tea & Cuisine

Making food and brewing tea could not be two culinary techniques that are farther from one another. But tea and traditional recipes can be combined to make epic creations. There are thousands of wonderful recipes that incorporate tea to improve or add a new spin to classic recipes. Today, we’d like to present to you a new spin on fried chicken and a vibrant cupcake recipe that you should try!

Most recipes use tea in desserts: cakes, cookies, and brownies. But less known is that one can incorporate tea into savory meals too! Fried chicken is a Southern classic that has a multitude of variations depending on where you are in the world. Fine Cooking has a new take on fried chicken using tea. The recipe begins with cooking shallots and coriander seeds in medium heated oil. Add water, sugar, salt, and pepper to the pot. Bring this mixture to a boil. Once boiling, add green beans and carrots and cook until the vegetables are soft and tender. Then, remove the mixture from the heat and set it aside. Now, it’s time to add the tea. Combine more coriander seeds, crushed black tea leaves, and salt and pepper into the mixture. Now soak the chicken breasts in the tea mixtures, patting to ensure that the tea flavor is absorbed by the chicken. After the chicken is coated in the tea mixture, continue making fried chicken in the normal fashion. Coat the chicken in flour and then buttermilk, and repeat. Then fry the chicken until golden brown. And now enjoy your tea-infused lunch or dinner! For the full recipe click the following link: https://www.finecooking.com/recipe/tea-crusted-fried-chicken-with-pickled-green-beans-and-carrots

Now that you’ve had your meal, it’s time to make tea-riffic Earl grey cupcakes! Begin making the dessert by infusing the tea into milk. In order to make sure the Earl grey flavor comes through in dessert, you’re going to need A LOT of steeped tea, like about four tea bags. This step will take a while so sit back and relax while your cupcakes become one with the tea. Next, beat the eggs and sugar in a mixing bowl until stiff peaks form. Add oil and mix again. In a separate bowl, mix together flour, baking powder, and salt. Now combine the tea-milk mixture and the dry ingredients into the egg mixture alternately. Mix the batter until smooth and pour into your cupcake tins for the oven. Bake until golden, remove from the oven and let the cupcakes cool. Now we have to make the frosting. Make a standard buttercream frosting by whipping confectionary sugar and butter. And you want, to add caramel sauce to the frosting to make caramel buttercream that pairs wonderfully with Earl grey flavor! Check out the full recipe and more tips here: https://foodduchess.com/earl-grey-cupcakes-with-salted-caramel-buttercream/

You may be asking yourself how tea and chicken go together and how that would taste good but it does make sense if you break things down. Black tea is paired best with sweeter or fruity foods. Now that doesn’t match the description of chicken but the spice coriander adds a sweeter taste making it pair perfectly with the chicken. This same taste combination goes for the Earl gray caramel cupcakes. Earl tea is a form of black tea and the sweetness of the cupcakes is the perfect match with the tea. Green tea would also be very good in this cupcake as green tea is recommended to be paired with “vibrant” flavors.

These recipes show how tea and food can be combined; you just have to know the right pairings. Here’s the basic rundown so you can make your own recipes. Black tea goes well with sweet foods (berries, bananas, sweet potatoes.) Green tea is best with vibrant foods (ginger, apricot, bacon.) White tea pairs best with “solid” foods (sandwiches or biscuits.) Take that information as you will and make your newest and greatest recipe.

Sources:
https://www.foodpairing.com/a-primer-on-tea-pairings/