Naftal
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Posts posted by Naftal
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I know that tea is used in many other ways besides its use as a beverage.I see it used in any number of products when I go to the local Japanese market. But, I am unsure as to how these delights are made. I would be interested hearing from anyone with experience in this.
( As an aside, I have read and heard from others that Lapsang Souchong can be ground in a spice-mill and used to give fish a smokey flavor. Has anyone done this?)
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Thank you !!!!!!!!
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So this is what I was shown( it is a variation on the first method you mentioned):fill the empty teapot with cold water, put it in a pot filled with cold water, and bring it to a boil. Afterwards, fill the pot with leaves and boil it as before.
Also, you may know this, but (according to my sources) the reason one seasons a pot is to rid it of any sand or mud that may have gathered in the pot when it was made. This makes sense to me,clay being what is ...
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One Yixing pot I have been trying to season has a lingering clay-minerally odor that was not diminished much by 1) boiling it for an hour, followed by 2) a rinse and soak in warm water and air drying, followed by 3) an hour boil with tea leaves and then overnight with the heat turned off, followed by 4) a good rinse.
Has anyone had this experience? Anything else to do? Is it worth seasoning further or should I not waste the effort on this tea pot?
Just an opinion- I have read that( due to the popularity of yixing) there are many pots labeled yixing that are not really yixing. And they exhibit the properties you describe. Obviously, one cannot be sure. This is just a thought...
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Well, after a good start, things have really slowed down. Why? I am really interested hearing from people on this topic. What teas do you like and how would you describe the taste?
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Greetings-This is a very interesting topic. I don't have an opinion yet.But my tea teacher was trained in China and I'll let you know what he says.
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CKatCook-Just curious :What is the berry in plumberry (which berry)?
nakji-Is cold sencha common in Japan?
Hest88-Do you have a favorit Pu'er?
gfron1-Thanks for sharing your tasting notes,got any more?And, I agree with your views on aged pu'er.Also, do you happen to know the grade of the Dragon Well you had? Dragon Well is one of my favorits too.
jpr54_Thanks for your input. I always look forward to your responses.
All-Thanks sooooooooo much! Your responses are exactly what I am looking for.I would like to see a lot more conversations about the taste of tea. After all, tea is food.
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Ok- so I know I prefer An Ji to Dragon Well White, But why? I haven't the clue. I do know why I love Pu'er. An 8 year old loose Pu'er reminds me of the lake front. I think of clean lake water and wet tree-bark(I said this was subjective!).
So, The point is...how do you describe the taste of your favorite tea? -
Since the author refered to the Michigan wine industry:Paul Lukacs considers the L. Mawby Talismon Brut to be one of the 40 best wines in the country
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I just don't think that the guy writing about the merits of the linguini con vongole they're serving at Luigi's, however philosophically informed, is turning out stuff in the same league with Immanuel Kant (or Stendhal, who did the odd bit of criticism).
We are most definitely agreed on your point. I wouldn't even think of suggesting such a thing. What I am saying. among other things, is that it might not do any harm if we thought of Kant, Rousseau or John Rawls as setting a scene for ethical behavior.
I am also saying that (at least to me) critics in any field who have not a philosophical thought in their heads as they sit down at their computers (or with their ball point pens) to influence public decision making and inspire public thought and debate might do well to find another profession.
Since I agree with you, I'd like your imput on the following question:
Can food critics be wrong? Can the clueless masses (of which I am one) be right? I would like to cite the following examples from art history: Ruskin had a really hard time with some of Whistler's stuff and-as you know-the critics hated Impressionism when it first burst on the art- scene. If this is off-topic, please let me know
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We (restaurants) cannot be all things to all people.
Take your own teabags and be done with it. After 24 years in F&B, I simply do not see why this issue should be, well, an issue! Is it really that difficult for us to bring you a pot of water so you can enjoy your own tea? You're happy, good on ya', and how would you like your steak cooked? (Unless you're bringing me a raw cut of beef to cook for you...now we have an issue!
)Brushing the dust off an old story.Fifty years ago I would go to town with my Dad, we called him Pop, and he told me this story. This certain gentleman that had just left the bar that afternoon was a former mob person of some kind. Something in finance, in accounting or something that had made him a rich but very careful man. He drank a special kind of alcohol, VO or something that was expensive.
Pop said he would always pay for an entire bottle then buy the drinks individually from the newly opened bottle. I do remember asking Pop what if the place he was at didn't have that kind of booze. Pop said then that guy wouldn't drink there. I mean as a kid hearing this, I couldn't figure out why he didn't take the leftover with him and why he would pay for drinks if he owned the bottle. But that's the story Pop told me. He said the man didn't want to get poisoned or something. "But Pop why would..." I guess the words 'former mob person' didn't register much with me at that time.
So I kept thinking of this old story whenever I perused this thread. The mob guy just bought a bottle from the place's stock, so there was no hard feelings there.
So what's crossed my mind on many ocassions is to bring a new unopened box of tea to give to the kitchen and then buy the cups of tea out of it. I've never done it yet but it's crossed my brain many times whenever I was wishing for some nice pleasant tea. Maybe my reluctance has something to do with my lack of mob connection...
But still I don't think this idea is quite kosher either. You would have to be careful not to step on toes y'know? You would need to make nice with the manager and staff and build a relationship first. But former mob dude got away with it because it was already in stock and it was a plus plus for the establishment not to mention how he clearly excelled at not stepping on toes overall huh.
Yes!Thank you,thank you, thank you so much
These are ,in my opinion, perfectly wonderful 
ideas I always buy a meal at the place I bring my tea to. And I tip well too. I would never think of doing other- wise.Most restos can't afford to stock a pu'er, I can respect that. I am not asking them to serve fine food and exceptional tea, just exceptional food(which they do).As mentioned earlier if I want exceptional tea, I go to my local Chinese teahouse and get a 6-year old Beencha :cool:Lastly, I don't mean to insult the many fine restaurants that have good tea selections. I know there are many places that carry good tea. And, to those of you who do I say "God Bless You!!! " -
Along the lines of bringing your own tea bag into restaurants...
It seems not unusual for people in my neck of the woods to bring a latte into restaurants where espresso is not served. Many places seem fine with that although I've seen signs forbidding the practice.
This is similar to the byoT issue in that you aren't going to be ordering a beverage thus depriving them of hypothetical income. It's different in that you are not asking for any extra dishes or service.
I can see both sides... I don't want to deprive anyone of making a living but don't feel bad about having a meal and only ordering water - latte or not (I *like* water). I prefer good coffee. The only time I can think of when I did this, I was sitting with a friend having coffee and we decided we were hungry and went across the parking lot to get breakfast, thus gaining them customers that otherwise would have stayed put and eaten mediocre sugary pastries.
So is this a Pacific Northwest phenomenon? Under what if any circumstances is it acceptable to bring a coffee drink into a restaurant?
I can think of two breakfast places (Persimmon and Geraldine's Counter) that decided making lattes was not a good use of their time and energy. Both understand that patrons with lattes are still ordering and don't frown upon the practice.Foaming takes time, makes noise, and requires attention. I can see not wanting to add it to the house.
Okay, that just was preaching to the choir. Any place outside of Washington?
As the one who started Patrons with Tea bags-I am very much against people taking any food item into a restaurant without placing a substatial order. I eat regularly at the place I bring my tea. I have a full meal and I leave a good tip.Lastly, I really like tsquare's contribution to this discussion
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Wouldn't it be far more ideal to have them actually pour the boiling water over your own tea bag, as opposed to dunking into not-quite-hot-enough water (a considerable pet peeve of my tea-lovin' wife)? But then of course, you've got to know the moment they poured it so you know how long you want it to steep.
Point being, if you're really anal, you could really make it difficult on the waitstaff as well as yourself.
Just musing, is all.
Christopher
Wonderful stuff, thanks. I will just make two points:
1)I do know many people who are fussy about water
temp. I am not, if I can use my own tea the water can be any temperature it wants, as far as I am concerned, the only issue is the tea.
2)The Chinese teahouse that I frequent serves their green, oolong and black teas at different temperatures. Not only that, but they offer the same three taps to the public so they can resteep their teas
And,each table gets its own timer(set at 3 min.). I personally do not expect anything like this at any other restaurants.And a question...Is there really any difference between the tea enthusiast who wants his tea properly steeped and the chef who wants his food properly cooked? I hope I am not out of place with this. I am really curious.
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I think this is the right time to introduce a "Baggage Charge" similar to a "Corkage Fee".I see this very much like a corkage issure. I think it is only fair to expect a charge for hot water service. The economics of the situation dictate. Ware washing and breakage are a more significant part of the equation than the cost of a tea bag.
I could live with this. It makes a lot of sense.
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Tipping well and being polite about the request goes a long way toward currying favor with the staff. And more often than not it's more trouble/has bad blowback to say no to someone even if the restaurant wants to. The point about losing more than you'd gain by saying no is true. But that's a subtle form of economic blackmail, isn't it? You're still bringing your own food/beverages into a restaurant. And I'm just not sure that's ever really appropriate, unless there's a truly compelling reason to do so, for instance having special dietary needs or taking some sort of homeopathic prescriptive. One's preference for a certain brand isn't compelling. Drink it at home or try and convince the restaurant to carry it for you and all the other customers.
Hello-You raise very interesting point. My response: If this is"blackmail" (and I am not sure that it is), isn't the blackmailing mutual? I will continue to go to a restaurant that serves wonderful food and lets me bring my own tea instead of going to an equally wonderful, or better, place that won't let me do this.
As I mentioned earlier, I am deeply into good tea. -
Hello- This is just my purely subjective opinion but...I never use milk when drinking chinese or japanese, teas but I always use milk when drinking indian or ceylonese teas. And I love Earl Grey.
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In the coffee and tea forum there was a very interesting discussion about patrons bringing their own tea to restaurants. I am really into good tea and I asked a waitress at a place I frequent if she could just bring me a pot of hot water into which I could put my own tea. She was willing to do that and now I have a pot of water waiting for me whenever I go there.
Would most restaurants do this, or am I just lucky?
But,most importantly, I am wondering how people would take being asked that question? I do not want to offend anyone.
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My favourite teppanyaki place uses it with oysters, with a little squeeze of lemon. It's very , very good!
Hello- I am really interested. Would this be similar to a vinaigrette?
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Hello-First you might want to look into these websites.san shui teasandhou deandImperial teaand
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Hello again- As usual, I have two questions, and one is a language question:
First: What are the Manderin characters for "Gaiwan"(the lidded/
handle-less tea-cup)and what are the proper tones for the transliteration?
Second:I am still looking for someone well-versed in any of the various Chinese tea traditions...anyone?
Thanks!
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I've recently discovered that some of the higher quality teas I've been buying really can be reused for several cups of tea. This is working beautifully with oolongs, chinese green teas, and pu-erhs.
Some questions that have come up, and my apologies in advance if this is discussed elsewhere, but I can't figure out how to search for this topic without getting huge numbers of irrelevant hits:
Why does the resteeping not draw as much bitterness out of the leaves as does a longer primary steeping?
How long do the leaves need to rest, if at all, between steepings?
And a related but more general question: when served tea in a gaiwan, the handleless cup with shallow saucer and lid, how do you prevent oversteeping and bitterness and at the same time avoid a burnt tongue from drinking the tea too quickly?
Hello- Tea
is a subject that is very near and dear to my heart. So,I was wondering if you have anything new to report. Have you been resteeping ? How is it turning out? Are you familiar with Gong Fu Cha? -
Most Chinese restaurants serve cheap tea. Would it be rude of me to bring in my own tea and ask for boiling water? Has anyone else done this?
How do you transport your tea? Do you buy the packets (loose-leaf, not bags of dust) or bring a small sealed container?
Hello- I really enjoy this
thread. I have been wondering: Have you brought any tea to a restaurant? How were you received? -
So the Basic Asian Mart at 25750 Novi Road is really a market. They have a kitchen on-site and my Taiwanese friend assured me that they serve real chinese food. So I bought a bag of frozen dumplings and after cooking them just like the lady at the store instructed proceeded to enjoy this amazing and oh so tasty treat.
They have a small menu available for in house dining.
Happy Year of the Rat:huh:
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I've recently discovered that some of the higher quality teas I've been buying really can be reused for several cups of tea. This is working beautifully with oolongs, chinese green teas, and pu-erhs.
Some questions that have come up, and my apologies in advance if this is discussed elsewhere, but I can't figure out how to search for this topic without getting huge numbers of irrelevant hits:
Why does the resteeping not draw as much bitterness out of the leaves as does a longer primary steeping?
How long do the leaves need to rest, if at all, between steepings?
And a related but more general question: when served tea in a gaiwan, the handleless cup with shallow saucer and lid, how do you prevent oversteeping and bitterness and at the same time avoid a burnt tongue from drinking the tea too quickly?
I love how high-quality leaves can resteep!
Bitterness in teas is from the tannins in the leaves. There's only a limited amount of tannins, so once they've been released in the first steep or a long steep, that's it.
The leaves do not need to rest between steepings. Although they shouldn't be let to dry out before resteeping.
Traditional gaiwan (and yixing teapot) sets come with a little decanter/pitcher thing(sorry I don't know what they're called!) plus the cups. You'd steep the tea for the proper number of minutes, then pour it into the decanter, then serve it in the cups.
Otherwise, you could also try using water that is slightly cooler (below boiling), around 70 C. Tannins take longer to leach out in cooler water, so the resulting tea will taste less bitter. Short of digging out the leaves, there's not a whole lot you can do for oversteeped tea in the gaiwan, other than diluting with more water.
Hello- The decanter is called a chahai in Chinese. The literal translation is"tea sea", but "faircup" or "serving vessel" would be a better translation. You can buy them alone at this site.
Cooking With Tea
in Cooking
Posted
That is very interesting
!I was wondering:How would this be done in a wok?