Green Tea Rice - Reusing leftover tea leaves.

 Hello. Here is another tip of leftover tea leaves.

 It is literally green tea and rice. I am using this method when I am too lazy to make something with leftover tea leaves, but they are too good to be my plants fertilizer.

Direction is so simple. (Embarrassing to call it recipe. haha)

 

Green Tea Shrimp Dumplings - Re-using Tea leaves

 When I visited Bohyang Dawon(보향다원), a beautiful organic tea farm, the owner kept told me to never throw leftover tea leaves away. Especially, since she feeds gold her plants fertilizer, the tea leaves are just so healthy for you.  (Check my older post for more information. Click)

There are many ways to reuse leftover teas. It depends on tea leaves (and your taste :D ).
If you had green tea or oolong tea, you can reuse them for food. However, you should always make sure that, you either remove moist from leftover tea leaves immediately and as much as possible, or you use them right after you brewed. The reason is because of bacterias may increase in wet tea leaves.


 I had been drinking HS's pan-fired tea for couple of days, so I had quite of leftovers and wanted to use them as soon as possible. Because HS's pan-fired tea is also from that gold tea plants and very mild, I decided to put the whole things in to dumpling dough.

Green Tea Dough

You will need

3 cups all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 1/4 cup water

1/2 cup leftover green tea leaves

1/2 tablespoon Matcha (Green Tea Powder)

Directions

 

1. Blend green tea leaves and water with blender until the tea leaves becomes small enough to not bother you when you eat. Doesn't need to be very fine.

2. In a large bowl, mix flour, salt, and green tea water.

 

3. Once they become one smooth dough, let it rest for more than 2 hours in room temperature. This is very important process, otherwise the dough will be too elastic and very hard to roll it.

 

4. Dust the board with flour. 

5. You can take a small piece of dough and roll one by one(Chinese style), take around quarter amount from entire dough each time, roll it, and use round cookie cutter or small dish(Korean style), or use the knife cut them into square. It depends on what you feel easier.  

Shrimp Dumpling

You will need

1lb uncooked shrimp

1 can water chestnut

2/3 cup edamame

1 cup soaked or fresh shitake mushroom
(2/3 cup dried shitake mushroom, 1/2 teaspoon sugar and 1/2 teaspoon soysauce)

2 tablespoons chopped green onion

1/2 tablespoon sesame seeds

1/2 tablespoon soy sauce

1/2 tablespoon sugar

1 tablespoon cooking wine

 1 tablespoon oyster sauce

1/2 tablespoon good quality sesame oil (1 tablespoon regular one)


Dumpling dough

Directions

 

1. While waiting the dough is resting, soak the mushrooms with sugar,
soy sauce and water(just enough to cover the mushrooms)







2. Steam frozen edamame for 5 minutes







3. Chop all ingredients and mix all together

4. Put the mixture in refrigerator, while waiting for the dough gets soft






5. Put shrimp mixture in the dough, and fold it nicely :)
I found picture directions.

I made similar as third one, but using round dough.

6. Lay lettuce on steamer

I think Chinese style is using sliced lettuce, but just the whole things work fine. 

7. Steam uncooked dumplings for 4 minutes

(If you want to store the dumplings in freezer, make sure you steam them first.

Otherwise, they will all stick together)

Origami Fortune Air Freshener Bag - Re-using Tea Leaves

 Today, I want to introduce two different ways of folding fortune bags. It is 3D origami, so you can put stuffs inside. I put left-over tea leaves to use as an air freshener; Dried left-over tea leaves or herbal tea can be a natural air freshener. 

 Traditional fortune bag or lucky bag has been worn since Silla period(57 BC – 935 AD) in Korea. It was invented, because there are no pockets on Korean traditional costumes, "Hanbok". However, it became more like a fashionable items for women, like a purse these days. It was made out of different kinds of materials, such as silk or cotton, and was decorated differently depends on gender and social status. Generally these four fortune letters were embroidered. Sou;수(壽) · Bok;복(福) · Bou;부(富) · Gui;귀(貴)


 

The shapes are either angular, like left and middle one, or round. 

 

 

 In these days, fortune bags are only used during lunar new years. 

When kids bow to their older family members, except siblings, older family members should give them some pocket money to put into fortune bags. 

 So here's the first way. 

 

Once you done folding it, make a whole on top part. Or you can just use a stapler or tape.

 

Put the tea leaves.

I used twine to close the bag. 

Isn't it cute? :D

Here's the link for second way. It's in Korean, but the blogger took pictures of each steps.  Easy enough to understand.

2nd Origami bag

 

I put herbal tea leftover instead, for this one. 

 

 

Also use twine for closure.  

 I made four of them.

 

Two for my shoes

 

 

Two for my husband's shoes

 Ta-da!!!

 

과)

Mini Steam Bun Bulgogi Burger. - Reusing Tea Leaves Recipe

 When I am traveling, I like to try each country's or each state's famous fast food. For example, France has "Quick burger", Japan has "Mos burger", Australia has "Hungry Jack's", and New York has "Shake Shack". Sometimes when there are no famous fast food place, Global brands are also good options. Especially McDonald's makes different menu for different countries.



 

 

Lotteria's Bulgogi Burger

 In Korea, there has been Lotteria. Especially when I was kid, I could see it everywhere; Many other brands took over Lotteria these days. And one of their famous menu is "Bulgogi burger"; "Bulgogi" is a grilled marinated beef dish that is originated Goguryeo; Ancient Korean kingdom (37 BC – 668 AD). I know McDonald's in Korea also has Bulgogi burger, but that's not an original and honestly very bad. Lotteria's "Bulgogi burger" has been so famous, it was a mandatory menu for kid's birthday party or school events. I honestly didn't really like this burger, just because I don't like sauce on my meat and I had it too much. Still this burger reminds me my childhood.

 I used steamed buns that I made organic whole wheat flour, instead of regular burger buns, because I just feel like that's more Asian and I had bunch of buns from Pecking duck night.
You don't need to bother to make steamed buns. Regular burger buns or store-bought steamed buns are also great.

You will need

- Patties

2 pound ground Beef 

Black pepper

1/4 large white onion

1/2 scallion

2 teaspoons minced garlic

1 1/2 tablespoons green tea leaves (Helps remove bad smell from meat)

1 tablespoon potato starch 

1/2 cup sliced rice cake (optional)

- Steamed buns

- Cheese, Tomatoes, Mayonaise

-10 tablespoon Bulgogi sauce 

+ Simple version

4 tablespoons soysauce

2 tablespoons sugar

2 tablespoons cooking wine 

1 1/2 tablespoons minced garlic

1/2 tablespoons sesame oil

Black pepper

+ Always good sauce version  

Directions

Before making patties, soak sliced rice cake in water

1. Mix all patties ingredients with food processor or chop and mix them in a bowl.

   (I normally don't buy ground beef, 

so I roughly chopped the ingredients and blend with food processor.)

2. Chop soaked rice cake in whatever size you want. 

3. Mix starch powder, ground beef and 7 tablespoons of bulgogi sauce. Knead it as you make bread. 

  (I forgot my green tea leaves, so I put them later. )

4. Form your burger. (I push a half slice of rice cake in the middle of patties. If you don't put rice cakes, make a deep depression in the center with your thum)

5. Wait at least an hour to marinate the meat.

 

6. Start steaming the buns.

7. Heat a pan with a bit of oil. Once it shimmer, put patties. 3 minutes one side and flip them. 

8. Pour around one teaspoon of bulgogi sauce on top and cook for 4 minutes. 

Flip one more time to make sure the patties are covered with the sauce. 

9. Feel free to create your burger. (The original bulgogi burger has lettuce, mayo, and patty)

I recommend to put mayo. Bulgogi sauce and mayo make an interesting combination.

I actually made three sliders, but sneaky bad boy ate one.

This one. (Yes, I'm in trouble.)

 

I like milkshake with my burger instead of coke.

So I made green tea latte instead.

+

More about green tea latte

 

I also like to eat them as they are. (With a bit of chopped pine nuts)