Description
Taiwanese women's warm-up drink: a tea brewed slowly with brown sugar, the intense smoky aroma and sweetness of dried 'Guiyuan' (longan), 'Hongzao' (red dates), and goji berries.
Restaurants serving Longan and Red Date Tea
Researching
We are researching restaurants that serve this dish.
On this site you can check dictionary details and, later, places to buy or eat related items.
The Recipe section below is a general reference, not a recipe from the listed shops.
Recipe
Ingredients
- Guiyuan(Dried longan)
- Hongzao(Red dates)
- Goji berries
- Brown sugar
- Water
- Ginger(optional)
Instructions
- [Authentic Recipe]
- [Medicinal Fruit Prep] Remove shells and seeds from 'Guiyuan' (Longan: lychee-like fruit) sold dried and smoked shell-on in Taiwanese markets, extracting the black, sticky flesh (emits intense sweetness and smoke aroma).
- Make light vertical slits in Hongzao (dried red dates) with a knife (helps release flavor/compounds). Lightly wash goji berries.
- Put massive water, Guiyuan, Hongzao, and goji berries in a pot.
- Bring to boil on high, then simmer slowly on low for
- mins to
- hour until the water turns amber and the sweet fruit aroma fills the room.
- Add rich Taiwanese brown sugar (or red sugar) to preferred sweetness (people sensitive to cold add sliced ginger here to make 'Jiangzhi Guiyuan Hongzao Cha').
- Pour into cups along with the fruit flesh to serve.
Learn more Spice, substitutes, tips
Key spices
Intense Guiyuan smoke aroma and Brown sugar
Substitutes at Japanese supermarkets
Store-bought dried fruit tea, Honey
Pairing
Taiwanese sweets like Pineapple Cake
Trivia
[For Women] A 'drinkable heat pack' sold in glowing warm pots at Taiwanese winter night markets and drink stands. Said to replenish blood and warm the body (Bu Xue An Shen); a gentle, sweet magical medicinal tea Taiwanese women drink daily during menstruation or cold winter days.
Eating tips & etiquette
[Unique Eating] While sipping the tea slowly, scoop up the 'soup-absorbed, plumped-up date and longan flesh' sunken at the bottom with a spoon to eat as a dessert!
Allergen
None