Tea Time

On New Year's Eve, Patrice came with a little bag with a present inside. When I opened it the next morning, I found a beautiful glass jar, filled with an assortment of teas.

"I have been drinking more tea than I have water," Patrice told me later. She included some standards, such as Good Earth Tea, as well as some interesting flavors. The other night, I drank the Yogi Tea Calming Tea, and it was just delicious.

I know that in America, we live in a coffee world, and I do like coffee from time to time. But when it comes to drinking hot drinks, I will always grab tea first. In many coffee places, the concept of having tea is a strange one. They usually give you a tea bag and some hot water, and think that you'll be completely satisfied. Well, I for one am not. I could have that at home for less than what you are charging me at your shop.

Lucky for me, in Southern California we have amazing places like Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf and Peet's Coffee and Tea, where they actually consider tea drinkers and brew their tea from loose leaves. The flavors seem endless. In general, the numerous varieties of teas out in the world make me wonder why people don't consider them to be anything special.

They each have their own unique flavor, depending on the type of tea it is and what else is included. Some you can have just on its own, like a green tea. Others reveal their complex flavors through adding sugar or honey. Some teas you can add cream and they provide something special that may have not been there before. Hell, I love teas Middle Eastern style, complete with a sprig of mint and sugar.

I always wonder why tea drinking isn't more revered in the culinary world. We look for the subtleties of flavor in wine (as Adam Riley knows), or even in unexpected things such as olive oil (more on that later). So why not in a delicious drink that, like olive oil and wine, is also good for you?

In the meantime, enjoy a delicious noodle bowl, which would go perfectly with a cup of green tea. Eat it in the best of health.

NOODLE BOWLS
1 pound fettuccini or udon noodles
1 box soy strips, chicken or beef
1 red pepper
3 scallions
3 cloves garlic
1 cup snow peas
1 can stir fry veggies (see Kosher Alert!)
2 tablespoons sesame or canola oil, divided use
3 tablespoons hoison sauce

Cook and drain the noodles according to package directions. Meanwhile, heat a large skillet with oil over medium heat. Add the soy strips.

Finely chop the garlic. Chop the red pepper in ¼ inch pieces and the scallion to 1/8 inch pieces. Add them, along with the snow peas and can of stir fry veggies, to the soy strips. Make sure they are all cooked through. Combine the veggie mix with the noodles.

In a small bowl, thin out the hoison sauce with a small amount of water. Pour over the noodles and vegetables and serve.

Quick Tip 1: Kosher hoison sauce is a hard find, so if you can’t here’s a quick replacement for your bowl: 2 tablespoons of soy sauce with 2 tablespoons of honey. It’s a yummy substitute. Teriyaki is also a good substitute too, but can run a little thin.

Quick Tip 2: I am not usually a fan of whole wheat noodles, but I find that they go perfectly in these noodle bowls. Just make sure to find a thicker noodle.

KOSHER ALERT!: Although the stir-fry veggie combo of bamboo shoots, water chestnuts and baby corn are yummy, not all stir-fry veggies are created equal. As long as they come from China, they need a special hecsher. There are plenty of brands that aren’t from there, which don’t necessarily need a hecsher.