Tea as Tourism

Sri Lanka Turns to Tea to Lure High-end Tourists

With its stunning views over Sri Lanka's rolling green tea hills, the Norwood Plantation Manager's bungalow was designed to compensate British tea planters for their lonely lives far away from home.

The plantation remains, but the bungalow has been refurbished and converted into a boutique hotel to woo high-spending tourists who want a few quiet days sampling the colonial tea estate life.

''We have had mostly British visitors,'' says Asela Wavita, manager for Tea Trails, a firm set up by Sri Lankan tea company Dilmah to manage the bungalows.

''I guess it's the concept, the British colonial feeling, that appeals to them -- they can experience what their ancestors enjoyed.''

Tea Trails has refurbished four former managers' bungalows set in well-kept gardens, deep in the hills that have produced Ceylon tea since the 19th century.

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Tea as Art

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Tea Recipes #4

The hottest culinary trend is using tea, both in brewed and leaf form, as an ingredient in entrees, desserts, hors d'oeuvres, and more. As the saying goes, "tea isn't just for drinking anymore." Cooking With Tea by Robert Wemischner and Diana Rosen is a fabulous resource for tea basics (types of tea, brewing, cooking with tea) and tea recipes. As an added bonus, the appendices are as entertaining and informative as the rest of the book. Topics include:

• Pairing Teas with Food
• Seasonal Menus
• Glossary of Words Used for Tea Tasting
• Resources for Unusual Ingredients
• Resourced for Connoisseur Teas and Teapots

A few of the enticing recipes:

RATA-TEA-OUILLE serves 4

• 1 T. Darjeeling tea leaves
• 3 c. water
• 4 Japanese eggplants
• 2 medium tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and cubed
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1 medium zucchini, chopped
• salt and pepper to taste
• grated fresh ginger root to taste (typically 1 T.)
• pinch of chili powder and sugar, optional

Brew the tea in hot water for 3 minutes, then drain through a fine-meshed strainer pressing hard on the leaves to extract as much infusion as possible. Set aside.

Char the eggplants on the stovetop or under the broiler. Split lengthwise keeping halves attached. Place in baking pan and stuff with tomatoes, zucchini, and onions and season with salt, pepper, and grated ginger. Pour the brewed tea over all and bake uncovered at 350, basting occasionally. Cook for approximately 30 minutes. Add chili powder and sugar as desired.

HONEYDEW GREEN TEA FRAPPE serves 4

• 3 T. loosely packed green tea leaves of your choice
• 2 oz. crystallized ginger, roughly chopped
• 4 c. cubed ripe honeydew melon
• 2 c. ice cubes made form distilled water
• superfine sugar to taste
• garnishes: thinly sliced honeydew melon, crystallized ginger in long pieces, and fresh ginger juice

Chill 4 tall glasses. Brew the tea leaves in 1 quart of water and allow to steep 4 minutes. Pour the tea through a fine-meshed strainer, pressing hard on the leaves to extract all the liquid. Add the crystallized ginger to the brewed tea and let cool about 15 minutes. Chill in refrigerator until cold. Pass liquid through sieve to remove ginger pieces.

Puree the melon and ice in an electric blender. Add tea/ginger infusion and process just to blend. Pour into tall chilled glasses and sweeten to taste with superfine sugar. Add a dash of fresh ginger juice (optional). Garnish with a thin slice of honeydew wrapped with a slice of crystallized ginger.

JADE SHRIMP IN DRAGONWELL TEA serves 4

• 2 quarts water
• 1 oz. loose leaf Dragonwell tea
• 1 lb. peeled and deveined medium shrimp (tails on)
• 1 T. sesame oil
• 1 large clove garlic, peeled and smashed
• 1 oz. fresh ginger root, peeled and thinly sliced
• 2 lbs. fresh spinach leaves, stems removed, washed and dried
• salt to taste
• 2 T. sesame seeds, lightly toasted
• garnishes: julienned yellow and red peppers and finely slivered scallions

Bring water to just under a boil. Add tea and shrimp and cook over low heat at a bare simmer for 3-4 minutes or until shrimp are opaque. Remove from heat and let stand until cool, then refrigerate.

Just before serving, heat sesame oil in large skillet and add garlic and ginger root. Cook for about 20 seconds being careful not to burn. Add spinach and salt to taste and cook just until spinach barely wilts. Drain. Put spinach in a bowl, arrange chilled shrimp on top, sprinkle with sesame seeds, garnish with peppers, sprinkle with scallions.