5 ways to add rooibos to your cooking
What's the story
Rooibos, a distinctive herbal tea from South Africa, is taking the culinary world by storm with its diverse applications.
Famous for its rich flavor and health benefits, rooibos can be added to a range of dishes to amp up taste and nutrition.
This caffeine-free tea lends a mild sweetness and earthy undertones to both sweet and savory recipes.
Here are five unique ways to use African rooibos in cooking.
Sweet touch
Infusing desserts with rooibos
Rooibos can also be used to infuse desserts such as cakes, cookies, and puddings with its unique flavor.
Steep some rooibos leaves in milk or cream before adding them to your dessert recipe, and you can impart a delicate sweetness and earthy undertone.
This method particularly works well with vanilla or chocolate-based desserts, adding depth without overpowering the original flavors.
Flavor boost
Creating savory marinades
Incorporating rooibos into marinades for vegetables or tofu adds an unexpected twist to savory dishes.
The tea's natural sweetness balances out spices and herbs while tenderizing ingredients.
To make a marinade, brew strong rooibos tea and mix it with olive oil, garlic, lemon juice, and your choice of herbs.
Let your ingredients soak up the flavors before cooking.
Depth addition
Enhancing soups and stews
Rooibos can also add depth to your soups and stews by serving as a flavorful broth base.
Its earthy notes go beautifully with root vegetables like carrots or potatoes.
All you have to do is replace part of the water/stock in your recipe with brewed rooibos tea for an added layer of complexity.
It enhances the overall taste profile without overpowering other ingredients.
Refreshing twist
Crafting unique beverages
Beyond traditional hot tea preparation methods, lies another opportunity: Crafting unique beverages using cold-brewed rooibos as a base ingredient!
Combine chilled brewed-rooibos liquid form along with fresh fruits such as citrus slices, mint leaves, honey syrup, ice cubes to create refreshing iced teas and mocktails perfect for summer gatherings!
Aromatic blend
Baking bread with rooibo's essence
Adding brewed rooibos's essence while making bread dough adds subtle aromatic qualities to the whole loaf experience.
Just replace some liquid content (water or milk) required during the mixing process, and get deliciously fragrant homemade loaves.
These are perfect for breakfast, sandwiches, toast, accompaniments to soups, and salads alike.