There is no tea in Tibet
Tibet did not produce tea, and the famous historian Ban Jue Sangbu in the 13th century recorded in the "Tibetan-Han History Collection" that Dian tea was transported from Lijiang and other places to Lhasa in the Tang Dynasty, when it was loved by Zampu as a health medicine, and it was only treasured by the royal family and temples, and the folk could not enjoy it. Until the late Tang Dynasty, folk trade became active, tea began to enter Tibet in a steady stream, and the custom of drinking tea gradually evolved into a new tea culture in Tibetan areas.
In the old days, tibet's environmental climate was not suitable for growing vegetables, long-term wheat, dairy products and meat for food, nutrition is extremely unbalanced, herders use cattle and sheep skins to exchange tea, can also make up for the body's needs of various vitamins to a certain extent.
Butter tea is inseparable from oil and tea
With tea, it is natural to have ghee, which is called neat. Ghee is a cream extracted from cow and goat's milk, commonly known as "ghee".
The milk is heated, poured into a special large wooden barrel (locally known as "Snow Dong"), and then the milk is whipped up and down hundreds of times with a special utensil, the milk oil and water are separated, and a layer of yellow fat is floating on the milk, and this layer of fat is scooped out and repeatedly kneaded in cool water, and finally the purified fat is put into the leather pocket, and after cooling, it becomes ghee.
In summer, the grass of the Tibetan plateau is fertile and watery, and the ghee extracted in this season is the best quality, and the milk ghee is golden yellow, while the goat milk ghee is pure white. The people of Tibetan areas love the ghee produced by yak. The taste is sweet and has high nutritional value.
Ghee is an indispensable food in the life of Tibetans, in addition to making butter tea, it can also be used as vegetable oil to stir-fry vegetables and fry snacks. This thing is extremely hot, and in the early years, herders could not afford to eat meat, and they had to rely on ghee to resist the cold.
In the hearts of Tibetans, ghee is the essence of a hundred herbs, the most nourishing, pure and beautiful food, so when paying homage to the gods and Buddhas, ghee is also used when lighting lamps, simmering mulberry, and so on.
The collision of ghee and tea leaves sweeps away the impetuousness between the dead
The recipe for butter tea can be complicated or simple, and the base is strong tea: put brick tea or tea into a pot, add water to boil into strong tea. Strong tea is salted, boiled and then added ghee, stirred well, and it becomes the simplest butter tea.
Or pay attention to some people's homes, put ghee, a small amount of milk and salt in this strong tea, pour it into the "Xuedong" tea barrel and pump it back and forth dozens of times, wait until the tea oil and milk blend, and then pour it into the pot to reheat, which is a very traditional practice.
More local people will also beat an egg in the tea, add walnuts, peanuts, sesame seeds, etc., to make the "Hermès" version of butter tea, and the heat is even more explosive!
Butter tea must be drunk while it is hot, and if you are greedy for herbal tea, wait to be "stationed" in the toilet.
Butter tea is high in calories, slightly salty in taste, but it is also controversial, people who like milk are mellow, and they feel very fishy when they are not used to smelling it, and some people suggest that they can appreciate the fragrance by drinking two more sips.
But in Tibetan areas, it is still necessary to drink a little, it is said that on the one hand, it can alleviate altitude sickness, oil tea can also prevent the chapped skin caused by dry air, morning and evening when the weather is cold can also increase the calories of the body, many restaurant owners will tell foreign tourists, to adapt to the local high altitude climate, the best way is to drink more local butter tea.
Drinking butter tea is also a sense of ceremony
Since ancient times, Tibetans have paid attention to etiquette, and drinking tea is no exception, paying attention to the order of the elder and the young, the host and the guest. Drink tea to use a clean, complete tea bowl, fill the tea to first respect the parents and elders, with both hands to respect, with both hands to pick up, when pouring tea, be careful not to spill the tea out of the bowl.
Monks are one of the Three Jewels of Dharma monks in the minds of Tibetans, and if you invite monks to come to their homes to chant sutras or do things, they should prepare tea sets for the monks alone, and they should not be mixed with others.
When a guest comes, the host must be served with butter tea, and before drinking tea, he uses the ring finger of his right hand to dip a little tea in the tea bowl, and then the finger is sprinkled three times into the sky, implying dedication to the gods, dragons and gods. Then gently blow open the slick oil on the surface of the butter tea, full of tea, while drinking and adding, so that the guest's tea bowl is always a full bowl of tea. When the butter tea is drunk to the end, the bottom of the bowl should leave some tea base, do not drink the pot dry tiles, in line with the Tibetan customs and etiquette.
Wake up early with a bowl of butter tea, accompanied by refreshing rice dumplings, plus some air-dried meat, and it is an authentic Tibetan breakfast.
Or butter tea with Tibetan noodles, and the body is warm after eating.
If butter tea is really not used to drinking, you can also try a more peaceful Tibetan sweet tea, this tea is made of fresh milk or milk powder, black tea and sugar, drink more like milk tea, sweet and delicious, a cup of a few dollars, refreshing the mind, but also help adapt to the plateau climate of the effect.