ne Saturday morning a few months ago, whilst perusing through the many wonderful culinary delights at St. Georges market, I spotted a single little packet of matcha at the Suki Tea stall. I could not have been more excited. For anyone who spends their time reading food blogs or recipe browsing online will know that many tasty treats can be made with this brightly coloured powder. Matcha is a very finely milled green tea in which the whole tea leaf is ground up so it contains stacks of flavour and is incredibly high in antioxidants.
Yesterday, after having one too many cups of coffee, I didn’t feel too great. So despite having primarily bought it for baking, I decided to wise up and start today off sensibly with a cup of this bright green concoction.
It was lovely. It had a deep grassy flavour which tasted so much fresher than other green teas I’ve had in the past. Usually this tea would be made in a special matcha bowl, known as a chawan, and whisked vigorously with a small bamboo whisk. I, however, decided just to shake it up in a clean jam jar I had lying in my cupboard. It did a pretty decent job! I enjoyed it so much I’m thinking of starting every morning with a cup of matcha instead of the usual tea or coffee. It can also be made with hot milk to create a kind of matcha latte, but I think I quite like the clean taste of having it dairy-free. Matcha is definitely a great find, but doesn’t come cheap. The price varies greatly, but I think mine cost around £16 for a 100g packet. It does go a long way though due to it’s intense flavour and colour so very little is needed whether it’s being made as a drink or used in baking. Also, did I mention it’s the variety of tea used in the traditional Japanese tea ceremony? Yeah, it’s a bit special.
theediblecraft.com 