Matcha is a powder that comes from green tea and is commonly produced in Japan. To prepare matcha, the tea bushes are protected from direct sunlight by covering them. When the tea leaves are covered, they change their color from light green to dark green. The dark green tea leaves start producing theanine which is an amino acid that has many health benefits in the body including promoting the health of body organs. Matcha is the main ingredient of green tea, which has gained a lot of popularity in this age when everyone is trying to stay healthy.
Some of the health benefits of matcha include being an antioxidant because matcha has a lot of substances called catechins. Antioxidants lower the risk of chronic diseases because they make harmful radicals to become stable. Matcha also improves brain function like memory and attention. Studies have shown that matcha can also prevent cancer and heart diseases. Since matcha speeds up the body’s metabolism, it helps people who are struggling with obesity to lose weight.
Here’s how to use Matcha innovatively:
1. To Make Ice Cubes
Matcha does not only make green tea, but it has multiple other creative uses. One of these uses is making unique and stylish ice cubes. To make matcha ice cubes, take an ice cube tray and cold matcha tea to fill the ice cube tray halfway. Put the ice cube tray with the matcha tea into the freezer and wait for it to freeze.
Remove the ice cube tray from the freezer when the match has frozen. Remove the matcha ice cubes from the freezer by twisting it. Some of the creative ways to use these ice cubes are to dress water and cocktails or even lemonades.
2. Add Flavor And Value To Your Smoothies Using Matcha
Another creative way of using matcha is adding it to your smoothies. Adding matcha to your smoothies helps to increase their nutritional value and matcha has health benefits like protecting you from diseases. You can also add matcha to your smoothie to improve your metabolism as if you are on a weight loss journey.
To add matcha to your smoothie, mix one teaspoon of matcha with hot water and mix it thoroughly using a whisk. Wait until this mixture forms a thick and smooth paste that yôu can then add to your smoothie. Once you add the match to your smoothie, blend the mixture until it becomes smooth and even. You can then enjoy your matcha smoothie.
3. Make a Green Tea Latte Using Matcha
To make a matcha green tea latte, you will require matcha powder, hot water, honey or agave nectar, hot milk, or soy milk. If you want to make a large cup of large latte, take half a teaspoon of matcha powder and mix it with hot water. Add one or two teaspoons to the mixture and stir with a whisk until it becomes uniform and smooth.
Add more hot water until it reaches a third of the cup and keeps stirring the mixture until it becomes a good mixture. Take another large cup and fill it with hot milk or soy milk. Mix the hot milk with the matcha mixture until it forms a smooth mixture. You can add more milk foam on top and make it more appealing by putting some matcha powder on top. If you want a cold latte, you can add ice cubes to your tea.
4. Use Matcha To Make Traditional Matcha Tea
Traditional matcha tea is common in Japanese ceremonies and is the main use of matcha in Japan. To make this traditional matcha tea for yourself, you can purchase matcha powder from MatchaOutlet.com. To prepare traditional matcha tea, prewarm a bowl and add a three-quarter full teaspoon of matcha powder. Then add about 60 ml of hot water that has heated for up to 80 degrees Celsius. Stir this mixture thoroughly using a whisk.
The best type of whisk to make traditional matcha tea is a wooden whisk made from bamboo called a chasen. If you do not own such, you can just use a wooden whisk but avoid metallic ones because they can’t form a good matcha tea froth. Keep stirring your mixture until it forms a froth on the surface that means that your tea is ready to drink.
5. Use Matcha To Make Noodles
You can add matcha powder to buckwheat (soba) noodles to make a special type of noodles that is common in Japan called cha soba noodles. To make your own Cha soba noodles, add wheat flour. For every 100 grams of wheat flour that you use to make your noodles, add one teaspoon of matcha powder. Follow the same procedure that you use to make regular noodles only that these will have a matcha flavor and of course its health benefits. You can also find cha soba noodles in some retail stores, especially those that sell Asian products.
6. Add Flavor To Your Porridge
You can also add matcha to your porridge-like oatmeal to make taste unique or just in search of the health benefits of matcha. To make matcha oatmeal, boil two cups of water in a pot and add oats, stir the mixture until it is ready. Remove the oats from the cooker and add milk, matcha powder, maple syrup, and vanilla extract and mix these contents into a smooth porridge. You can then garnish the porridge using fresh fruits. Matcha powder can also make cornmeal or millet porridge.
7. Add Matcha To Your Soup
To add flavor and color to your soups, you can add matcha powder to the soup when it is pureed. Matcha powder makes soups that are light-colored to have a green hue that looks more attractive. Adding matcha to your soups and purees makes them have more nutritional value and boosts your health.
Matcha powder is derived from green tea leaves when they are covered from sunlight before harvesting. Matcha powder has a lot of health benefits because it contains antioxidants that promote the health of your liver, brain, and heart and reduce the risk of chronic diseases like cancer. Matcha powder has many uses apart from making green tea. Some of the creative uses of matcha powder include making ice cubes, porridge, soups, noodles, and smoothies.
