This post is sponsored by Teasenz. As always, all opinions and recipes are mine alone. Thank you so much for supporting the brands that help Bam's Kitchen feed those "hungry teenagers".

BBQ Oolong Tea Smoked Chicken is made with juicy and succulent chicken drumsticks smoked with the essence of Teasenz oolong tea, star anise, orange peel, brown sugar and rice and then glazed with a sticky and delicious ginger honey soya glaze. 

You are going to love this ancient Chinese method of smoking poultry with oolong tea, spices and herbs as it really gives a depth of flavors to whatever you are grilling and it is so easy to do.  BBQ Oolong Tea Smoked Chicken Drumsticks has 3 layers of deliciousness; the marinade, the smoky herbal essence of the Oolong tea and herbs and the ginger honey soya glaze. Oh my goodness, this dish is just going to knock your socks off!

Well don't take my word for it, I want you to try it for yourself! This recipe is happily gluten-free, diabetic friendly (if you substitute the honey with diabetic orange marmalade), egg-free and dairy free.

BBQ Oolong Tea Smoked Chicken preparation involves 3 separate steps but they are super easy. First there is the marinade with Shao Xing Rice wine, ginger, orange zest, Szechuan peppercorns, soy (tamari sauce) and of course lots of garlic. Next there is a tea smoking made with  aluminum packets filled with Teasenz Oolong tea, star anise, cinnamon and orange zest for aromatics and brown sugar to help with binding of the products and rice to help keep the tea burning longer over a gas or BBQ grill. Lastly, there is a finger licking slightly sweet, savory, spicy sticky glaze that is slathered on during the last couple of minutes while the chicken is on the grill.

If you are bored with the usual grilling routine, I dare you to take this easy BBQ Oolong Tea Smoked Chicken challenge. As a matter of fact, Teasnez would like to invite all Bam's Kitchen followers to an international giveaway so that you can give this recipe a try yourself. Keep on reading to find out how to enter the giveaway.

Tea smoking has been used for many centuries in China and is a quintessential dish of Szechuan cuisine. Usually, black tea leaves are used to give it that dark and intense flavor so I used part Red Robe Da Hong Pao (Black Tea from Fujian Province) in my tea and herb smoking packet. I wanted something a little different with more aromatics and herbal flavors and that is exactly what I achieved by using part Anxi Tie Guan Yin (oolong tea ) from Teasenz in the tea and herb smoking packet.

I also made a delicious pot of Teasenz Anxi Tie Guan Yin oolong to go with my BBQ Oolong Tea Smoked Chicken. The dried leaves were beautifully emerald-green had tiny tight twisted buds.

When you allow the tea to steep in the hot water, the leaves opened up completely and are beautiful. Each pour was delicious and different but smooth and pleasant. The 4th pour was slightly sweet and complex with floral notes. I felt it gave the chicken drumsticks the same sort of tantalizing aroma.

I learned some lessons along the way while preparing and creating BBQ Oolong Tea Smoked Chicken and I would like to share them with you.

• Marinating is best done overnight to allow the flavors to infuse, but if all you have is an hour or less, no worries.
• You need to dry your chicken with paper towels really well before putting them on the grill so that the skin stays nice and crispy.
• You can use a whole split chicken, chicken thigh, drumsticks, etc. It is best to use chicken on the bone as it has so much more flavor and takes longer to cook and this way it has more time to infuse with the tea and herb smoker.
• You can try many different types of teas for smoking. All of them have subtle changes in the aroma and flavor of the chicken. You will need to change or add more tea and herbs to your smoking pack about every 20 minutes in the grilling process as the smoke reduces over time.
• If you are diabetic, you can exchange honey with a little diabetic mandarin orange marmalade.
• If you like a darker brown chicken and are not gluten intolerant, marinate your chicken in dark soya sauce. I marinated mine in tamari sauce to keep it gluten-free.
• Leave a gap on the top of the aluminum foil packets to allow a place for the smoke to vent out. This gap also gives you a place to add some extra tea and brown sugar half way through the smoking/cooking process.
• You can find the whole spices such as star anise at your local Asian grocery store or just use 1 tablespoon ground 5 spiced powder as a substitute. You can also use ground cinnamon 1 tablespoon, instead of whole cinnamon barks.
• You could also smoke your chicken in a wok but you first have to steam it, then smoke it and your whole house becomes a smoker. Grilling and smoking your chicken on the grill takes half the time and half of the mess and it is the perfect way to spend a lazy Sunday afternoon.

Teasenz is a China-based, international retailer and wholesaler of fine Chinese tea and tea ware. Teasenz tea connoisseurs travel frequently to well-known tea regions to taste and source the finest. Teasenz teas are grown, processed, and freshly packed here in China to preserve all the flavors and aromas from plant to pot. Teasenz delivers on-line teas to customers all over the world. We drink many different kinds of Chinese teas every day here in Bam's Kitchen and cook with teas as well and now we would like to bring this healthy and delightful experience to you.

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Teasenz is sponsoring an INTERNATIONAL GIVEAWAY to one lucky Bam's Kitchen Follower. The giveaway will be open until July 10th, 2015.  You will have the chance to win a delightful selection of Chinese teas including the delightful Anxi Tie Guan Yin (oolong tea ), osthmus flower tea, and rose tea and many others for you to enjoy.

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