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Matcha Green Tea: A Look at The Health Benefits

March 12, 2011 By anmatcha Leave a Comment

Article by Gavin Edley

From its roots in Japan, Matcha green tea has developed a popular following in America, Canada, and most recently, Europe.

This is primarily thanks to the suggested health benefits of consuming this warm beverage.

Matcha is basically a tea from the Kyoto prefecture in Japan. The health benefits come from the way that it is grown (under bamboo blankets for the final period of growth – to fill the leaves with chlorophyll) and the way that it is processed (ground, into a fine powder).

Matcha is seen to be healthier than traditional tea because you actually consume the tea leaf itself and therefore receive a much higher potency of antioxidants, chlorophyll, and catechins etc.

Energy-giving

Matcha contains caffeine.

Now, this is not necessarily a bad thing as matcha also contains a natural amino-acid called L-Theanine (a natural mood enhancer) which works together with caffeine to provide a prolonged release of energy over 6 hours.

In this sense, one cup of matcha in the morning should keep you going all day long, as opposed to coffee – where you need to keep having a cuppa just to maintain your energy levels.

Mind-focussing

Some years ago, Buddhist monks consumed matcha before undergoing 12-hour meditation sessions to help them remain calm and focussed.

This is due to the L-Theanine content of matcha.

L-Theanine is proven to stimulate the mind whilst helping you to maintain a sense of peace and calm simultaneously.

Metabolism-fuelling

Green tea assists in the process of thermogenesis (the body’s production of heat) which then boosts metabolic rate.

Matcha – being an amplified version of standard green tea – delivers this benefit but to a greater extent.

Cholesterol-reducing

Studies undertaken by the British Medical Foundation found that green tea is proven to help reduce bad cholesterol levels in the body.

Matcha delivers this same benefit as standard green tea, but to greater effect.

Detoxifying

With matcha you ingest the actual tea leaves – not the steeped water, and a study by the University of Colarado found that matcha actually contains 137x the antioxidants of standard green tea. Meaning, matcha is brilliant for removing toxins from the body.

In fact, matcha has more antioxidants than a lot of other ‘superfoods’ including pomegranates, blueberries, orange juice, and spinach to name but a few.

About the Author

Vitalife Matcha specialise in matcha green tea for the UK and European markets, and their matcha can be purchased online at http://www.vitalifematcha.com.
Matcha Green Tea

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Matcha Green Tea

March 12, 2011 By anmatcha Leave a Comment

Article by AlexaWang

Matcha Green Tea is a type of powdered green tea grown in the shade like gyokuro and which is traditionally used in the Japanese tea ceremony. These days, it is not uncommon to see it used in untraditional ways such as in matcha lattes and other green tea recipes. It is highly valued for it’s rich supply of antioxidants and green tea benefits. Traditionally, structures of bamboo covered with rice straw are erected over the tea plants, blocking off 90 percent of the light for 3 weeks. Once harvested, the leaves that will eventually become matcha are steamed in the normal way green tea are, however they are not rolled but instead dried the then put into a wind tunnel type of machine which breaks the inner parts of the leaf away from the veins, resulting in a product known as tencha.
Types of Matcha

It is important to know that there are many grades of matcha, from food grade used in various recipes to a large number of ceremonial grades, the everything in between. Some are very cheap, others can be extremely expensive. However, matcha can be broken down into two basic types – the normal “thin” type known as usucha, the a less-often encountered “thick” type known as koicha. The main differences between these are as follows:

Thin Matcha (Usucha): This is your typical matcha. It’s not really “thin” per se, only when compared against the thick type. Many confuse “thin” with meaning weaker, however just the opposite is true – thin matcha is more strongly astringent than koicha.

Thick Matcha (Koicha): Grown from older plants typically at least thirty years old, it has a milder taste. Because of that, the amount used can be doubled without giving a bitter taste, giving the matcha a much thicker consistency when brewed. Koicha is almost always more expensive than usucha.
Matcha Preparation Methods

Step1. When brewing matcha, heat your matcha bowl by adding very hot water and allowing it to sit for a few minutes. Then, empty and DRY COMPLETELY.

Step2. With special bamboo tea spoon, add 1 1/2 ~ 1 3/4 spoon fulls of thin matcha to the bowl (double for the thick koicha type). We like to sift it through a screen for a more consistant, frothier brew, but this is optional. Note: If you are using a regular teaspoon instead of the traditional Japanese bamboo matcha spoon, only add about 1/4 of a teaspoon!

Stpe3. Add about 1/2 cup of hot water with a temperature of about 175F/80C.
Important: This is somewhat less than boiling.

Step 4. Wet your tea whisk. Next, whisk briskly in a “W” shaped pattern for a minute or two until the matcha froths to a nice green colored foam.

About the Author

Editor of Vicony Tea Directory,Tea Taster,having been in tea study for more than eight years.

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Matching Matcha About Green Tea Powder

March 12, 2011 By anmatcha Leave a Comment

Article by Benjamin Hübner

Matching Matcha About Green Tea Powder

What is matcha?
Matcha is a fine, high-quality green tea powder used for a variety of purposes. Grown exclusively in Japan, this stuff is definitely not something you’ll come across for a penny or two a gram. It’s got this slightly bitter taste that doesn’t turn you away. Instead, it’s rich and mysterious taste will draw you in and not let you go until you finish things up.

What’s the difference between regular green tea and matcha?
If there’s a difference between matcha and regular green tea, it’s got to be the texture and the taste. Regular green tea is steeped in hot water, while matcha is literally mixed into the water. Heck, even preparing drinking matcha has its own ceremony: chanoyu.

What’s the difference between them with regards to health benefits?
The good thing about that is that matcha has pretty much the same benefits as drinking green tea. That’s because no fermenting takes place. The only thing that happens is that the process of selecting tea leaves, grinding them and serving them differs between regular green tea and matcha.

Are there any other ways that matcha is served?
Interestingly enough, matcha has some pretty creative uses aside from tea-drinking. You have cakes, pastries, candies, sweets, heck even some lattes and prepared meals have this green tea powder in them!

So how exactly is matcha healthy?
Here’s a brief list of benefits you get from drinking matcha:

* Antioxidants – research by scientific bigwigs point out that green tea has a pretty high amount of the catechin polyphenol epigallocatechin gallate in it. In English, that’s the stuff that prevents cancer cells from forming in the first place as well as killing them off when they do form up into tumors.

* Cholesterol Control – research again shows that green tea helps reduce the cholesterol absorption in your intestinal track. That means two things: weight loss and a healthier heart. Of course, no amount of green tea will help you if you literally chug down cholesterol in all its oily forms. But it’ll sure help you stay alive and healthy if you drink around three cups of green tea a day.

* Sugar Control – green tea and its green tea powder matcha help reduce the amount of sugar your body absorbs as food passes through. That’s why diabetes patients are often advised by their doctors to drink green tea to help slow down and prevent the passage of sugar into their blood stream.

* Detoxification – green tea, even green tea powder, still has a lot of chlorophyll in it. This chlorophyll helps absorb heavy metals and other nasty toxins floating around in your blood. So if you’re a recovering alcoholic or a retired chain smoker who is now concerned about recovering your health, green tea is one way to help your body flush out what poison you’ve accumulated in your body for years.

* Relaxation – sitting down with a cup of green tea for five minutes and enjoying the taste and texture of green tea powder may be one thing that’ll help keep you healthy. You’ve got to take care of not only your brain, but your mind as well. After all, it’s not just the chemicals and stuff you take into your body that makes you healthier.

So there you have it: a quick run down of the green tea powder known as matcha. Now you know why the Japanese are so fanatical about their green tea.

About the Author

Learn more about Green Tea and Weight Loss and Healthy Weight Loss at my Weight Loss Blog, visit: http://best-weight-loss-products1.blogspot.com

How to prepare Maccha Green with chasen. From www.ruchiyama.com
Video Rating: 4 / 5

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