How to Make Suan Gan Tea? A Step-by-Step Guide to the Production Method

Many people know that Dahu Township in Miaoli County is famous for its strawberries, but not everyone knows that Dahu also has another specialty, "Suan Gan tea" (sour citrus tea), which has a distinctive flavor and embodies the deep ancestral nostalgia of the Hakka people. In the mountainous areas of Taoyuan, Hsinchu, Miaoli and Pingtung in Taiwan, China, wherever there are Hakka communities, Suan Gan tea is produced.

Suan Gan is a plant of the Rutaceae family, also known as "fan gan" (foreign citrus). It originated in southern Asia, and the Suan Gan abundantly grown in the Meixian area of Guangdong Province in China is larger in appearance than ordinary citrus, with a diameter of about 100-150 mm and a thick peel of about 10-15 mm. Its shape is quite attractive, but its flesh is very sour and not suitable for eating, which is why it is called "Suan Gan" (sour citrus).

Because Suan Gan is not suitable for eating, and the Meixian area of Guangdong produces tea, some people mixed Suan Gan with tea leaves and processed them together to make "Suan Gan tea." After brewing, it serves as a household essential medicine for reducing internal heat, treating heatstroke, loss of appetite, coughs or tonsillitis.

Suan Gan should be picked when it is about 70 to 80 percent ripe, and stored for about ten days first, so that the peel softens. When pressing, fruits that feel dry, firm and supple are better for processing; otherwise, if the fruit contains too much moisture, it easily cracks. Having selected the Suan Gan, use the mouth of a cylindrical empty can to dig and twist out a round hole near the stem end at the top of the fruit, then set the removed piece of peel aside to serve as a lid for the fruit. Scoop out the inner flesh, mix it thoroughly with tea leaves and stir into a ball, or add Chinese medicinal herbs such as lemon and "Buddha's hand" (fingered citron), then stuff and press the mixture back into the empty Suan Gan shell. Cover it with the round piece of peel just removed, and use string to bind the Suan Gan tightly, wrapping around it top and bottom in a crisscross pattern. You can bind it into a pattern of eight lines or five lines, giving the peel a petal-like indented pattern. Press and squeeze it into a flat round shape, place it in a steamer and steam until thoroughly cooked. Afterward, place it under the sun to dry; on rainy days, string them together with rope and hang them next to the chimney pipe above the stove, using the hot air to smoke and dry the Suan Gan tea. When the Suan Gan peel changes from golden yellow to yellowish brown, and finally into a hard, rough, dark brown solid, it is done.

The finished Suan Gan tea smells of a faint tea fragrance and a slightly sweet, rich aroma of aged tangerine peel. To drink it, cut the Suan Gan, peel and all, into small slices and brew with boiling water; the strength is up to you, and a little rock sugar may be added as appropriate. It tastes sour, sweet, fragrant, bitter and astringent, with a truly unique flavor.