Matcha

I am a tea-aholic. OOlongs, flavoured blacks, herbals, florals, roobis, whites, and of course greens, I love them all. But matcha green tea is perhaps the most rewarding cup I ever make. Matcha is the most traditional and ceremonial of teas in Japan.

My reverence towards matcha was cultivated early as a young girl, mystified by the noble simplicity of tea ceremony at school in Tokyo. Every sip conjures up memories of tatami mats, tea whisks, silken kimonos, shoji screens, tea bowls, and the ritualistic turning of the tea bowl.



However, I don't drink matcha sheerly for nostalgia's sake...i also drink it because it is insanely healthy. How healthy? I suggest you check out this site for a little matcha tutorial. The highlights being:

-One cup of matcha is equivalent to ten cups of brewed green tea in terms of nutritional value

-Matcha made in the traditional Japanese style, whisked with water, is a full-bodied green tea. The intensity of the experience compares to one’s first taste of dark chocolate or red wine.

-Chlorophyll, the pigment which gives leaves their green color, helps to remove heavy metals and chemical toxins from the body

-Matcha contains L-theanine, an amino acid known to relax the mind. For this reason, matcha is also known as a mood enhancer. Buddhist monks drank matcha to assist in meditation, as matcha’s amino acids, combined with caffeine, offer a sustained calm alertness over time


抹茶 Matcha by Eat-My-Heart-Out 你吃,我看

I am a little surprised that matcha green tea is harder to find in the US and Europe than the basic green teas. So go out and spread the word!