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Matcha tea
What is matcha tea? Bright green in colour, with a smoothly sweet and delicately bitter flavour, matcha is an exceptional green tea that is ground to a fine powder. This green tea powder has been highly prized in Asia for thousands of years due to its health benefits.
Nowadays, it is not only used to prepare the fine matcha tea, but many foods are also enhanced with matcha: for example, drinks like lemonade or cocktails, as well as dishes like desserts or pasta sauces. Yet, matcha is much more than a dietary trend!
How to prepare matcha tea
Matcha tea needs to be prepared properly to fully enjoy the unusual flavour and health benefits of this green tea powder. Unlike other green teas, matcha isn’t brewed. The tea plant is ground so finely that the powder dissolves in hot water and is then drunk.
Preparation and variations
In Japan, matcha is a central part of tea culture and is prepared in an elaborate, ritualistic ceremony. However, the preparation is also crucial in terms of the matcha tea benefits.
You will need a matcha bowl (chawan) and a special bamboo whisk (cha-sen) to prepare matcha tea. Pour one or two grams of matcha powder into the bowl and add 60 to 100 ml of water. The water should be freshly boiled and no hotter than 80 degrees. Soft water is ideal. If the tap water is hard, you can use a water filter or, alternatively, use still mineral water.
Use the bamboo whisk to stir the mixture of hot water and green tea powder in the matcha bowl until frothy. The whisking movements should be made with your wrist, keeping it relaxed, and be roughly in the shape of the letter "M". High and firm tea froth is a sign of good matcha tea.
Matcha can be prepared with a stronger or milder flavour depending on personal preference. In Japan, the stronger matcha tea is called koicha and the milder version is known as usucha.
How to make matcha tea
Like all green teas, matcha tea is derived from the Camellia sinensis plant. However, cultivation and harvesting are very labour-intensive: The tea bushes are covered with black nets or bamboo mats a few weeks before they are harvested to protect them from direct sunlight.
The plants produce more effective substances such as caffeine or theanine when grown in the shade. This also increases chlorophyll production, which gives matcha tea its bright green colour.
After the leaves have been picked, they are steam-prepared and dried gently. The stems and veins are carefully removed so that only the most delicate parts of the leaf remain. Then they are stone-ground to a fine powder.
Afterwards, the green tea powder should be stored in a sealed container in a cool and dry place. It is best used fresh after harvesting.