Green teas such as West Lake Longjing, Huangshan Maofeng, and Biluochun are unfermented. The tea leaves are tender and fragrant with a good taste, making them suitable for preparing fresh and elegant dishes, such as Longjing Shrimp and Green Minced Meat Tofu.
Tea Shrimp
Green tea pairs well with lightly flavored dishes.
Green teas like West Lake Longjing, Huangshan Maofeng, and Biluochun are unfermented. The leaves are tender, aromatic, and have a pleasant taste, making them ideal for preparing fresh and delicate dishes like Longjing Shrimp and Green Minced Meat Tofu. To make Longjing Shrimp, first brew the tea leaves. When the shrimp is about 70% cooked, pour the tea and its liquid into the wok. Then add some yellow wine and a pinch of salt, and stir-fry until cooked. For the tofu, simply sprinkle the ground green tea over the already prepared minced meat tofu.
Black tea pairs well with richly flavored and dark-colored dishes.
Black tea is a fully fermented tea, with Keemun and Dianhong being the most famous varieties. Black tea has a slightly bitter and astringent taste, making it suitable for richly flavored and dark-colored dishes. It can remove fishy flavors and greasiness, and also has certain benefits for stomach health, such as Steamed Mandarin Fish with Black Tea and Black Tea Chicken Dices. When steaming the fish, wash the tea leaves and, along with other seasonings, place some in the fish's cavity and some on top of the fish, then steam until done. For the Black Tea Chicken Dices, you can first stir-fry the black tea, remove it, and then add it back to stir-fry with the nearly cooked chicken dices.
Oolong tea pairs well with greasy dishes.
Oolong tea is a semi-fermented tea. It has a strong and lasting aroma, a mellow and refreshing taste, and aids digestion. It is also suitable for pairing with rich and greasy dishes, such as Iron Goddess of Mercy Duck. This dish uses tea liquor; simply add the steeped Tieguanyin tea water to the water for stewing the duck. Finally, it should be noted that the general ratio of tea to ingredients is about 1:100, which can be adjusted according to personal taste.