We all have foods that we’ve grown up with, and recipes that have been passed down. The team here at JING are especially fond of these brown sugar meringues for their rich, treacle-like flavour, the recipe of which came from a member of the teams much-loved aunt (thanks Ann). Enjoying them one day, we concluded that their character might quite complement that of our woody and floral Wuyi oolong, soon after developing this oolong tea recipe.
RECIPE
Oolong Poached Pears & Brown Sugar Meringue
We weren’t wrong. With the slightly sour crème fraiche, and sweet autumnal pears, these didn’t hang around long. One of the team ate three in one morning, which we like to believe is a testament to how irresistible they really are. If you haven’t time to poach the pears for this oolong tea recipe, simply enjoy the meringue with a hot cup of Wuyi Oolong on the side.
Serves: 4 | Time: 1hr20 (plus overnight drying)
INGREDIENTS
For the meringue
- 3 eggs whites
- 3 oz caster sugar
- 3 oz soft dark brown sugar
For the poached pears
- 4 conference pears
- 400ml boiling water
- 12g JING Wuyi oolong
- 160g caster sugar
METHOD
For the meringue
Preheat oven to 120. Whisk egg whites until stiff and shiny. Slowly whisk in the sugar ounce by ounce, alternating caster to dark brown. Pipe or dollop into large rounds onto greaseproof paper. Bake in the oven for 2hrs, turn off the temperature and leave in the oven without opening the door for up to 5hrs / overnight
For the poached pears
Infuse the tea with the boiling water for ten minutes, set aside to steep. Peel the pears carefully. Over a medium/hot heat, add sugar and tea. Bring to the boil and reduce to a simmer. Add the pears and cover with paper. Simmer for 20 minutes, turning the pears halfway through. Remove pears and bring liquid back to the boil. Reduce to a thicker syrup. Dollop crème fraiche onto your meringues, top with the pears and spoon syrup over the top
INFUSE / PAIR WITH
Wuyi Oolong Tea
From the famous region of Wuyi, Fujian - known not only for its beautiful, rocky mountains but also its legendary production of world renowned oolongs and black teas - this Wuyi Oolong tea is rich and autumnal with uplifting notes of rose and peach. It has a smooth texture and no bitterness making it a great entry level tea to not only Wuyi oolongs, but the darker oolongs too.
While we prefer to drink it, we can’t deny that it works beautifully as an ingredient with stone fruits and goods baked with brown sugar.
