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Smoky Tea Essence




Source of Recipe


From "A New Way to Cook" by Sally Schneider






Recipe Introduction


"This powder, my most exciting discovery with rubs, is made from Lapsang Souchong or Hu-Kwa, a smoked tea from China's Fukien province. It imparts a sweet, bacony, smoky flavor to foods. You can use it in just about any dish where a slight hint of wood smoke is desired. I've rubbed it on steaks to give them a grilled flavor, infused it into broths to impart a bacony flavor to soups, and added it to pots of beans or to roasted peppers. When I am cooking for vegetarians, I use it instead of bacon or ham to impart a smoky flavor. While it is great as a rub on its own, I often use it in tandem with many other flavor essences and dry rubs."





List of Ingredients



• 1/2 cup (1-1/2 ounces) loose Lapsang Souchong tea, or 20 tea bags
  






Instructions



1. If you are using tea bags, cut them open. Empty the tea into a blender or spice grinder. Blend the tea for at least 1 minute at high speed, until you have the finest-possible powder. Let the mixture settle for about 30 seconds before removing the cover, so the fine powder does not fly into the air.
   
   Use a dry pastry brush to push the powder through a strainer set into a clean, dry container. Blend and strain the larger bits again.
   
   Makes about 1/3 cup.
   






Final Comments


Smoky teas are readily available in supermarkets and gourmet stores.