Ramblings: Recent travels with tea

It’s been a while since this blog has seen a new post, and yes, I missed keeping up with it. There was a good reason, tho’: I’ve been traveling without a dedicated computer.

I didn’t start out computerless. When I first arrived in Bucuresti, Romania for my annual visit, I had my trusty netbook with me. Unfortunately, while browsing the web at a neighbourhood restaurant with wifi, my Vipre security software failed me. When I got back to our apartment and turned on the netbook to recharge the battery I discovered that the operating system was fried, most of my files were corrupted, and I was getting some really scary error messages. That must have been some big bad nasty that attacked my poor little ‘puter. And from that point on I had only intermittent ‘net access at friends’ homes.

Now here I am back home in the USA, very annoyed that we’ve been paying for the Vipre software and and it failed me when I really needed it. Oh well. Maybe it’s time to get a new netbook — or upgrade to some other ‘net appliance.

Other than that, the trip started out well … and not so well. The good news? I met up with a friend for tea my first full day there — tho’ sort of half asleep from jet lag. And then the bad news: I discovered that I had forgotten my camera. So I don’t have any photos of the first tea room I visited in Bucuresti. Bummer, but I still enjoyed going there — and I do have a couple of shots taken by my friend.

At La un ceai in Bucuresti, Romania. Photo courtesy of Andreea Heroiu.

La un ceai — To a Tea — like many other tea rooms in Bucuresti is housed in a former villa.  I met my friend at beautiful Gradina Cismigiu, and then it was a short walk through winding side streets of old apartments and houses to get to the tea room. There we found several charming, peaceful rooms, along with an outdoor terrace, and chose a table in the main salon.

The tea menu was pretty much what it is in most Romanian tea rooms: lots of flavoured teas and tisanes with a few unadulterated teas sprinkled in. Romanians definitely prefer teas with added flavours, so it’s really no surprise. I did find a tea that I don’t see very often, a Darjeeling from the Gielle garden. I’m guessing it was a second flush. It certainly had that distinctive muscat taste and aroma, just not as fresh as I would have liked it. Still it was quite pleasant.

I should explain that Romanian tea rooms generally serve their teas in tea-for-one pots, with the loose leaves tucked into a disposable tea sac. The pot part of the T-F-O is already filled with hot water when it arrives at the table, so I’ve learned to order green or white tea as the water isn’t hot enough to properly infuse an oolong much less a black tea. I thought I’d at least try the Darjeeling, which normally requires lower-temperature water than most black teas. It was a relatively successful choice given the options — ‘tho I would have preferred the water to be hotter.

Tea was served with small gingery cookies. The room was comfortable and cool on this warm day. The company was delightful. And then … We had each ordered a glass of citronada to complement the tea. This is a beverage I very much like when I’m in Romania: it’s a combination of lemonade and orange juice, tho’ occasionally some lime juice or grapefruit juice is mixed in. It’s a terrific thirst quencher. But apparently somebody forgot the sweetener … and when I took my first sip, it was so tart that I nearly choked. Seriously. I think I scared my poor friend with my red-faced coughing fit. Fortunately it finally passed, although I could barely speak for several minutes. Well, maybe that’s a good thing .

Oh, and it led me to discover that the bathroom is nice and clean .

Altogether La un ceai is a pleasant place to spend time with a friend, which is a large part of what going out for tea is all about. So I will very likely visit them again during my next year’s trip to Bucuresti. I’ll just be sure not to order the citronada …

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In my cups: I love (these) coffee cups

I don’t drink coffee. While I absolutely adore the aroma, it seems to me that the aroma promises more than the taste delivers. Far more. In fact, I really don’t like drinking coffee at all.

I drink tea.

And I don’t like drinking tea out of the clunky mugs or heavy cups designed for coffee. No, I much prefer delicate teacups — with handles, without handles, and preferably made of glass. Because a large part of the enjoyment of tea is the visuals — the unfurling of the leaves, the play of light on tea liquor, and the multitude of colours that made tea encompasses.

Whenever I go into a tea shop, an antiques shop, a tableware shop, or any shop that has cups on offer, I’m immediately drawn to the one/s made of glass. Which is how, a good fifteen or so years ago, I came upon my first teacup that was really a coffee cup. I’ve since learned that its proper designation is cappuccino cup, with cappuccino being some sort of coffee affair topped with whipped cream. Inasmuch as I wouldn’t know a cappuccino from a concertino, I bought the tea cup and added it to my collection.

Perhaps you’ve noticed that teacups are generally tapered, with a smaller bottom opening to a wider rim. This is true of both Asian and Western style teacups. Unlike coffee cups, which normally have straight sides so the bottom of the cup is about the same as the top. I’ve been told that teacups have wider tops so the tea cools more quickly at the top; I’ve also been told that it’s so you can enjoy the aroma while you’re sipping.  The cappuccino teacup is similarly small at the bottom and wider at the top, which is pretty much why I presumed it was a teacup.

It was immediately put into service to showcase the many shades of black teas, from ebony to chestnut to auburn to burnt sienna to topaz to gold. While I could have used it for any kind of tea, I tend to drink my black teas from a larger cup than other types of teas — greens, oolongs, white teas.

A few years ago I was shopping at a beautiful homewares shop in Bucuresti, Romania that specialized in Spanish and Italian imports. And there was a cup of the same funnel-like shape as my cappuccino teacup but about one-fourth the size. Yes! Now I had the perfect cup for my green, oolong, and white teas. Even if I have since learned that its proper designation is espresso cup — espresso, again, being some sort of coffee preparation.

The two cups are now amongst the most often used of my good-sized collection of glass teacups. I like everything about them: the size(s), the shape, the handle that lets me hold it when a glass handle, or a handle-less cup, would be too hot.

In my not-so-humble opinion, these cups were mis-named to start with, and I have in fact elevated their status by using them for tea rather than for coffee!

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Cooking with tea: Curried rice salad

The calendar says it’s spring, and while some of us are still seeing the last of winter’s snow, already the days have become longer — and for most of us, sunnier and warmer.

Black India or Ceylon tea complements this dish nicely.

With the change of weather we’re starting to crave lighter foods rather than the heavier dishes of winter. This salad is something of a transitional dish: hearty enough for late winter, but also bright and fresh with a promise of spring.

For this dish I recommend you use an India black tea — Darjeeling, Assam, Nilgiri — or a lively Ceylon. Steeped the tea to regular strength. As always in these recipes, one cup of tea refers to an eight-ounce measuring cup. Basmati is a naturally white rice with a light nutty flavour and aroma; you can substitute jasmine — another naturally white rice with a lightly floral aroma — or if you can’t find either one just use plain white rice.

Serve this as an accompaniment to your favourite main dish in place of rice pilaf. Or for a light lunch toss in a protein source when you add the vegetables. For me that’s tofu sautéed in olive oil with a sprinkle of tamari soy sauce. And if you can find fresh spring vegetables like sweet peas or asparagus, toss them in as a substitute for, or in addition to, the celery or the bell pepper according to your taste.

This recipe is easy to double or triple for a crowd and keeps well on a buffet table.

Curried rice salad
About 6 servings as a side dish

2 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil, divided
1/4 cup chopped onion
1 cup white Basmati rice
2 teaspoons curry powder (or more to taste)
1 cup steeped black tea
1 cup water
2 Tablespoons tamari (or Kikkoman) soy sauce
1 vegetable bouillon cube or 1 teaspoon dry vegetable bouillon or broth
2 Tablespoons white wine vinegar
1 teaspoon sugar
1 Tablespoon chopped unsalted cashews, preferably raw
1 cup celery, diced
1 cup bell pepper, diced (preferably use two or more colours)
1 scallion, white and green parts, thinly sliced
salt and pepper to taste, optional

Curry powder gives this dish a flavourful “kick.”

In a heavy skillet heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and sauté for two or three minutes, then add the rice and curry powder and continue to sauté until the onions are tender but not browned. Stir in the tea, water, tamari, and bouillon. Raise heat and bring to a boil (if using a bouillon cube, break it up with a spatula until completely dissolved). Reduce heat to low and simmer, covered, until all liquid is absorbed, about fifteen or twenty minutes. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, mix together the vinegar and sugar until the sugar is dissolved. When the rice is fully cooked, remove the skillet from the heat and stir in the vinegar mixture along with the cashews and vegetables. Toss with a fork and spoon until all ingredients are well mixed. Adjust seasonings if necessary. Transfer to a serving dish or storage container and cool to room temperature or chill in the refrigerator. Serve cool or chilled.

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