Journal
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Chrysanthemum: A Guide to the Flowers in Your Cup
The most-sold flower in the Chinese tea trade is also the least understood on a western shelf. What…
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Simmering Herbs Into Soup Without Ruining the Soup
There is a narrow band between a broth that tastes of nothing and one that tastes like a…
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Goji Berries: How to Tell a Good One From a Bright One
Uniformly scarlet, uniformly sized, slightly damp — most goji on the market is all three, and all three…
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How to Make a Basic Decoction (and Why Twenty Minutes)
A decoction is the base technique behind most Chinese herb cookery: a covered pot, gentle heat, and a…
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Dang Gui: A Root With a Very Strong Opinion
It smells like a cross between celery and old books, and it will take over any pot you…
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Building a Tea Blend: Ratios That Work
Blending is arithmetic, not intuition. A base, a modifier, an aromatic and a sweetener — in fixed proportions…
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Aged Tangerine Peel: Why Age Is the Whole Point
Chen pi is tangerine peel that has been dried, stored and re-dried for years. The gap between one…
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Herb Congee: The Least Demanding Breakfast
One part rice, twelve parts water, and whatever herbs suit the morning. Congee is the most forgiving thing…
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Astragalus: The Root That Tastes of Almost Nothing
Pale, woody, faintly sweet — astragalus is the least assertive root in the cabinet, which is exactly why…
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Cold-Brewing Herbs Overnight
Cold water pulls different compounds than hot water — less bitterness, more of the delicate top notes, and…
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Red Dates: The Sweetener That Isn’t Sugar
A red date is not a date. It is a jujube — a buckthorn fruit the size of…
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Storing Dried Herbs So They Still Taste of Something
Most herbs do not go off — they go quiet. Four conditions decide how fast, and the fridge…
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