There is more than just adding salt to tea. Which tea pairs well with savory snacks?

I am known as a tea purist for those who know me well. I mostly drink pure loose-leaf tea without add-ons, such as floral blends, honey, lemon, sugar, or salt. However, that doesn't mean I don't appreciate tea with good combinations. Adding certain ingredients to certain teas can boost flavors and have certain health benefits (e.g., salt to tea, ginger tea, mint tea, etc). After all, I do enjoy a cup of chai from time to time. With a shot of creamy condensed milk in chai, that spicy, gingery tickle in my throat wakes me on a cold winter breeze.

After days of being bombarded with news about the recent controversial diplomatic affairs between the USA and the UK and reading comments from my Chinese social media feeds, I'm curious about what salt tastes like in tea. I bet most of you have already tried it, too.

The first try wasn't pleasant. It felt like I was brewing tea with seawater, maybe because I put too much salt. But after adding more tea to balance out the extra salt, it was pretty pleasant to drink. It reminded me of the yak butter tea I had on my trip to Shangrila, a Tibetan region in Yunnan, China, where people boil their black tea with butter and salt.

While tea lovers in the UK commented on how disgraceful it is to add salt to tea, the Chinese claimed that this is nothing new, as certain regions in China (Tibetan, Qinghai) have been adding salt to tea for centuries. There are ancient documentations of added ingredients in tea since the Tang Dynasty, when they used to cook their tea with many other ingredients like ginger, pepper, onions, and other spices, more like a tea soup—speaking of tea soup, one of my favorite Hakka dishes since childhood is lei cha, a vegetarian dish cooked with lots of herbs, peanuts, sesame, and grounded tea.

Tea Pairings with Food

Tea pairing with food is a creative process, but specific 'rules' apply to ensure a pleasant drinking experience.

1. Green Tea + Sweet

Green tea pairs well with lightly sweetened refreshments to balance out its slight bitterness.

2. *Red Tea + Sour

Red tea goes well with sour desserts. Black tea is a fully fermented tea with an intense sweet aftertaste, so pairing it with sour pastries or snacks will enrich the flavor and soften the intense aroma of black tea. Any food with a milky or creamy texture is also a perfect match. Hence, bubble tea and chai are mostly made with red tea, not to mention the all-time favorite iced lemon tea.

3. Oolong Tea + Savory

Oolong tea is semi-fermented with rich minerals and various flavors, from light to rich. Depending on the intensity, you can pair oolong tea with a wide range of savory snacks to balance the pungent aroma of oolong tea.

4. White Tea + Light and Non-Greasy

White tea is a slightly fermented tea with a cooling nature. The sweet white tea soup pairs well with some fresh, non-greasy pastries.

5. *Black Tea + High Calories

Dark tea is a post-fermented tea with a warm nature. It can be paired with slightly oily and fragrant snacks. Black tea has a strong, calm, mellow taste and is well known for its benefits of eliminating cellulite and greasiness. It is one of those teas that will get you drunk, so snacks with higher calories can ensure you don't get too drunk. That's why dim sum places serve ripe Pu'er and Liu Bao tea.

6. Do not pair fruits with tea

Most fruits are acidic, and tea is alkaline, so pairing them together will mitigate each other and cause stomach issues. It is advisable not to eat fruits 30 minutes before or after drinking tea; otherwise, you will most likely end up with a gassy stomach.

It ultimately comes down to personal taste. As someone who values the pure taste of tea, I only add blends or condiments to my loose-leaf tea when it tastes unpleasant, such as when it's too bitter or dull.

* In all my posts, I will follow the direct translation of Chinese tea colors and refer to black tea as red tea and dark tea as black tea, as it was called in China, so as not to confuse both audiences further.