Tea · drink
Longjing (Dragon Well) Tea
龙井茶 · Lóngjǐng Chá
Hangzhou green tea, pan-fired flat. The most famous Chinese green tea; the spring harvest is the most expensive.
Longjing tea is a green tea grown in the hills around West Lake in Hangzhou. The leaves are pan-fired (in large wide pans, by hand or machine) until they take on a flat sword-like shape. Brewed at 75–80°C; the spring 'pre-Qingming' (清明) harvest in late March is the most expensive (¥800–¥3,000/100g). Subtle, vegetal, slightly nutty, sweet aftertaste.
Where to try
Hangzhou: Meijiawu and Longjing villages for direct-from-source. Tea markets nationwide.
Dietary notes
Caffeine; loose-leaf tea.
Cities to try Longjing (Dragon Well) Tea
Other east dishes
- Beggar's Chicken叫花鸡
A whole chicken stuffed with aromatics, wrapped in lotus leaves and clay, then slow-baked until the meat steams in its own juices.
- Beggar's Chicken — Jiaohuaji叫花鸡 (江苏式)
A Jiangsu-province variation of clay-baked chicken with a lotus-leaf wrap and a mushroom and pork stuffing.
- Dragon Well Tea龙井茶
China's most celebrated green tea — pan-fired flat leaves from Hangzhou's West Lake district with a sweet, chestnut flavour.
- Drunken Chicken醉鸡
Chicken steamed and marinated in Shaoxing rice wine, served chilled. A Shanghai banquet starter.