Turning over a new leaf: Tea revived as trendy ingredient in dishes (2/2ページ)

Brewed tea is best in soups, baked goods and cream sauces.

Like wine and other beverages-turned-ingredients, the flavor of the tea must match the dish.

Rosen recommends sweet grassy greens for produce, shrimp and other shellfish. Soft Keemuns tastes great with poultry, while Cameroon's chocolate aftertaste is ideal with desserts or with sweet-flavored sauces for pork or chicken.

At Mandala, Romano continually experiments with the shop's 50-variety inventory, infusing the restaurant's signature chocolate cake with raspberry tea and soaking almonds in a bold Russian Caravan tea to give a "smoky campfire" undertone to a dark olive tapenade.

"The more I cook with tea," he said, "the more I realize how versatile it is, and how well it belongs in the kitchen."

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