Green tea is now known for its health substances. Of course green tea itself is healthy, but depending on how you infuse your teas and what kind of green tea leaf you use, the amount of health substance extracted from the tea will differ.
This time, we would like to introduce how you can make one of the healthiest green tea by extracting the health substance to the fullest. There are roughly three main factors that you need to know to make one of the healthiest green tea.
1. Type of Green Tea: Sencha
In Japanese green tea, there are several types: Sencha, High grade sencha, Gyokuro, Genmaicha, Hojicha, and Bancha. You can check my other blog for specific explanation about each tea.
The tea leaf that contains the most catechin (the mighty health substance) is the sencha, not the high grade but the regular one. So it is important that you choose the sencha tea leaf when infusing.
As for the reason, please check out my other blog post about the tea leaves.
*Catechin is also known as EGCGs
2. Water Temperature: boiled hot water
Japanese green tea is mainly composed of Catechin and Amino acid (there are other substance too but the major ones will be this two). The amount of catechin and amino acid extracted will differ depending on the water temperature. Hotter the water temperature is the more catechin will be extracted. We recommend the water temperature to be around 90 to 100 degrees Celsius (hot boiling water).
3. Infusion time: 5 minutes
Very simple, the longer you infuse the more catechin will be extracted. I would recommend about 5 minutes of infusion. Usually you will infuse for 1 minute, but 5 minutes will be enough to extract the catechin.
Summery
To infuse a healthy tea cup of Japanese green tea,
- Use sencha
- Pour hot water (100-90 degrees)
- Infuse for close to 5 minutes.
Please understand that more catechin is extracted the bitter it will taste. This bitterness you will taste is the healthy substance, catechin.
Personally, for tasting I would prefer warm water and infusion of 1minute, which will have more umami (amino acid), but once in a while it may be good to drink in this healthy style.
Hope you enjoyed reading and wishing you a healthy happy tea time. If there are any questions please ask anytime.
Thank you!