Back to the Origins: Fermented Tea Salad in Myanmar

At daybreak along the pathways of PanKam, villagers unravel bamboo mats upon which mounds of pungent tea leaves are piled up to dry beneath the days’ emerging rays of light.

Here in the hills of Shan state, northern Myanmar, it is rumoured that some of the earth’s first wild tea was cultivated. At the convergence of lands of Burma, China and north-east India, Camellia sinensis was first picked and brewed by indigenous populations for personal consumption. It is a way of life that seems to have rarely changed.

The enduring legacy of their tea-picking history could not be more in evidence throughout Myanmar today. Aside from just brewing tea, the Burmese love to gobble it down directly. A unique tradition for devouring fresh pickled leaves is crowned by their national dish; “Laphet Thock” ; fermented green tea salad.

Soft, slightly bitter leaves are jumbled eclectically with shredded cabbage, tomatoes, fried peas, crunchy beans and peanuts, oil and slices of green chili and garlic. It is a deliciously tart, distinctive and understandably popular dish. According to state statistics, pickled tea for use as food accounted for almost 20% of all Burmese tea consumption in Burma in 2006.

Meanwhile, brewed green leaves are offered for free alongside meals in almost every roadside resto and market stand as I meander through the country. To drink it directly, one just needs boiling water and a sprinkle of a few young and pungent leaves. The resulting cups make for some the freshest and lightest tea I have ever tasted.

Whilst strolling through the Shan hills without a guide, we are openly invited into several homes; long-houses where a heavy metal pot is slowly boiled and tea is willingly shared. We stumble across a circle of women growers making lunch, their bamboo tools dispersed by their sides. Pithy and beautiful, they lay out resting and laughing, washing their hair and shading from the sun. They offer us severed bamboo poles filled up with tea, and mounds of crunchy chickpeas roasted with red onion.

At times, strangers direct us from far through the valley by hollering and chanting when we roam the wrong routes. In these self-sufficient hills, we feel utterly cared for.

The Details

Hsipaw can be reached by a shaky train from Mandalay or direct bus from other major destinations in Burma.

Once you get there, Lily Guesthouse seems to organize two to four tours which go all the way to PanKam village. Otherwise, find Mr Book and ask him for the routes yourself. We stayed with villagers for $5USD per night; including yummy evening meals and breakfast.