I’ve always been fascinated with the concept of cooking with tea. I always think…tea? Food? Meat?! Really? I mean, you’re sort of pushing it with the matcha green tea powder, so you think: how could all of those gritty leaves in your food possibly be good?
But. And this is an important But. Tea-based dry rubs for meat are actually SO GOOD. And there is no grittiness! The tea is just like any other dried herbs you might use.
In Beijing, we usually leave tea-based recipes to the professionals. There is a restaurant called Green Tea, and their Tea Roasted Pork Belly has people waiting for hours outside the restaurant.
The first time we went, we waited for 2 hours before we got a table! But it was definitely worth it. The meat is juicy, tasty, and scented with fragrant green tea. It’s such an interesting, surprising flavor! I was totally surprised by how much I liked it.
But why wait 2 hours when you can easily recreate it at home? Jasmine, rather than your typical teabag green tea, is the star of these oven-roasted Jasmine Tea rub ribs. Not only is the meat brined in a tea mixture, but the tea is also incorporated into a tasty dry rub.
I used Jasmine tea because of its delicate, fragrant, and floral flavor, but feel free to use your favorite green tea–as long as it’s good quality! This weekend during your weekly grocery trip, pick up some tea and a couple racks of ribs–this recipe is a must-try, and you won’t be disappointed!
For a more traditional Chinese rib recipe, check out our Takeout style Chinese Sparerib recipe.
Jasmine Tea Rub Ribs: Recipe Instructions
*One important point to make…let the boiling water cool for 10 minutes before steeping the tea, so as not to scald it.
In a bowl or pitcher, combine the hot water, dried Jasmine tea leaves, salt, and sugar. Let the mixture sit until it’s cooled and the tea has had a chance to steep. It should look very dark and strong.
Put the ribs in a sturdy 1 gallon Ziploc bag, and pour in the brine mixture. Squeeze the air out of the bag and seal. Put in the refrigerator to marinate for 3 hours. Don’t marinate for too much longer, or it might be too salty.
Take the ribs out of the bag and brush off any stray tea leaves. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. In a small bowl, combine the pepper, cumin, paprika, ground tea, and salt, if using. Brush the ribs thoroughly with a thin layer of soy sauce, and rub the spices all over the ribs.
Transfer the ribs to the oven along with a small heatproof dish filled with water (this prevents the ribs from drying out). Bake for 1 hour, and brush the ribs on both sides with the honey water.
Bake for another 30 minutes, brush with honey water again, and turn raise the heat to 375 degrees. Bake for another 30 minutes, remove from the oven, and garnish with toasted sesame seeds and cilantro.
Roasted Jasmine Tea Rub Ribs
Ingredients
- 6 cups boiling water
- 2 tablespoons dried Jasmine tea leaves
- 2 tablespoons salt
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 rack ribs (about 3 pounds/1.4kg)
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon cumin
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
- 2 teaspoons high quality jasmine tea leaves (ground into a powder in a blender or spice grinder)
- 1/4-1/2 teaspoon salt (add this salt only if your ribs are very meaty. I skipped this for our ribs, and the salt level was perfect)
- 1 tablespoon soy sauce
- 2 tablespoons honey (dissolved with 1 tablespoon water)
- a handful each of toasted sesame seeds and cilantro leaves
Instructions
- In a bowl or pitcher, combine the hot water, tea leaves, salt, and sugar. Let the mixture sit until it’s cooled and the tea has had a chance to steep. It should look very dark and strong. Put the ribs in a sturdy 1 gallon Ziploc bag, and pour in the brine mixture. Squeeze the air out of the bag and seal. Put in the refrigerator to marinate for 3 hours. Don’t marinate for too much longer, or it might be too salty.
- Take the ribs out of the bag and brush off any stray tea leaves. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. In a small bowl, combine the pepper, cumin, paprika, ground tea, and salt, if using. Brush the ribs thoroughly with a thin layer of soy sauce, and rub the spices all over the ribs.
- Transfer the ribs to the oven along with a small heatproof dish filled with water (this prevents the ribs from drying out). Bake for 1 hour, and brush the ribs on both sides with the honey water. Bake for another 30 minutes, brush with honey water again, and turn raise the heat to 375 degrees. Bake for another 30 minutes, remove from the oven, and garnish with toasted sesame seeds and cilantro.
