Friday 16 February 2018 is officially the start of the Chinese New Year of the Dog. if you’re planning a celebratory meal, then read on to find out our recommended tea to pair with Chinese food.
Festivities are set to continue for around two weeks, not only in China but also here in the UK, where nearly 200,000 Chinese people live.
If you’re joining in the celebrations, then sticky rice cakes and Chinese dumplings take centre stage as the food of choice.
One tea that is popular to be drunk with savoury food in China is roasted tea. Roasting tea has been part of tea preparation methods in China for many years, and the practice has spread to other Asian countries, including Japan and Thailand. It is an acquired taste, but one that is well worth cultivating.
With nearly 40 teas from China to choose from on the Northern Tea Merchants website alone, which are the best ones to pair with Chinese food?
Our resident tea expert, James Pogson, gives his suggestions for the best teas to accompany Chinese food and celebratory meals, and here’s the big surprise, they’re not all Chinese!- Tie Guan Yin – It’s an exceptionally fine quality Chinese Oolong tea with the leaf grade of ‘top fancy Oolong. It has a delightful flavour and is a great accompaniment to chicken and vegetable dishes and is a wonderful digestif.
– Hojicha Tea – A Japanese roasted tea that has a sweet, slightly caramel-like aroma but the taste is very different and a great accompaniment to all savoury foods. It’s also a good digestif.
– Lemon Verbena – This is a drink that would not typically be consumed by the Chinese, but it is great after a heavy celebration meal. It’s from South America where whole Lemon Verbena leaves are fully air dried, releasing a delightful lemon scent when handled or broken.
– Ching Wo – One of the most distinguished South China Congous. It is a lighter bodied, delicious tea which is both refreshing and thirst quenching. It is best drunk without milk in order to savour its gentle, slightly smoky flavour.
Northern Tea Merchants stocks a range of black teas, herbal infusions, green teas and white teas from China.
If you have any specific questions on the subject of tea or coffee, then please don’t hesitate to contact James.
