Meet the most surprising “Spice” in Fall

I first tried to cook with tea when I noticed a jar of seated jasmine tea leaves, too flavored to let languish in the closet. On a whim, I blit it in a thin powder with a spice mill and I folded it in an orange cake dough. Just a small quantity transformed the flavor of the cake – the citrus fruits were brightened up by a slight floral note, while the tea tannins added a pleasant grip that balanced its sweetness. This little experience opened me a whole new way of thinking of tea – not as a drink, but like a cooking spice.

Of course, using tea as a seasoning is not new. Chinese cooks smoked duck with tea leaves for centuries, and bakers have played with Earl Gray flowering desserts well before leaving my spices. Even in modern desserts of black tea, however, the leaves are generally impregnated to infuse the flavor rather than treated like a dry spice – it looked like an opportunity that was ripe for experimentation. Matcha is proof of concept in sight – a powdered tea that has gone from the cup of tea in the cookies, the tiramisu and beyond the world. What is new here is simply changing perspective: treating tea like any other spice in your pantry. Once you get it well, the tea is concentrated, aromatic and versatile: ready to season the cakes, swirl in nurseries or even push a cocktail glass.

Why tea belongs to the spice grid

The tea works in cooking and cooking for the same reasons it shines in the cup: it brings aromas in layers, a slight astrint and a wide range of flavors. Here are the main qualities that make it such a natural seasoning:

Aroma: Tea is naturally scented. Jasmine carries floral notes, Earl Gray has the scent of bergamot citrus, hojicha (roasted green tea) has a grilled and hazelnut taste, and classic black tea brings a terry and a depth. The grinding of tea concentrates these aromas so that they disperse uniformly in pasta, strikers and creams.

Tannins: These are the compounds that give black tea and red wine their qualities in the mouth. In desserts, tannins balance the sweetness, the addition of the structure and prevents it from rich flavors from becoming slicer.

Versatility: With hundreds of varieties, tea can echo the flavors you already use in desserts (think of robust Hojicha in place of coffee or hazelnut oolong instead of grilled nuts).

How to use tea in everyday recipes

Each tea offers something different, and once in powder, its flavors naturally slip into familiar recipes. Here are some simple and tasty ways to start:

• Use it to season the citrus cake. Fold about 1/2 teaspoon of jasmine powder tea in the dough. The result is shiny citrus wrapped in a veil of floral perfume, the tannins lending a soft dynamic thorn so that the cake is not too sweet.
• Stir it to your favorite oven oven mixture before cooking. Stir a teaspoon of English breakfast tea in oat before cooking. Its malted and roasted flavor gives the oat hack a grilled depth.
• Infuse it in the ice cream. Whisk Earl Gray powder in a classic pastry cream base. Black tea adds soft tannins that cross wealth, while Bergamot lends an elevator of citrus. The speckled spots recall the vanilla seeds, but the flavor is clearly Earl Gray – elegant, scented and just slightly floral.
• Use it to savor butter cookies. Mix a finely ground oolong in a shortbread cookie paste or classic butter. Its woody aroma adds heat and complexity, such as golden butter or toasted nuts, without being able to be the simplicity of the cookie.
• Whisk in pudding. Fold the hojicha on the ground in a silky pudding. The roasted flavor of tea imitates coffee or caramel, making it a perfect correspondence for cream and sugar.
• Make a syrup infused with tea. Simmer equal parts of sugar and water, then incorporate any finely ground variety of tea until dissolution. Pass well and use the syrup to dip sponge cakes or shake in cocktails. Be sure to grind the tea very well – increasingly coarse, and the syrup will feel grainy instead of smooth.
• Make a cocktail edge. Growing particularly fine tea – almost dust – then mix with sugar for diameter glasses. Try jasmine sugar on a sparkling gin or gray error salt on whiskey sour.

Beyond the cup

Cooking with tea feels both inventive and intuitive. Why leave teapot in the teapot when it is also up to the spice rack – ready to season, whirlwind and surprise?