Green Tea. Chinese Tea

Green Tea

Green tea is a type of tea that is made from Camellia sinensis leaves that have not undergone the same withering and oxidation process used to make oolong and black tea. Because leaves are unoxidized, green teas keep their vital color. To prevent oxidization, the leaves are heat processed to eliminate the enzyme responsible for oxidization. In China, this is generally done by roasting or pan-firing the leaves, while the Japanese generally accomplish this by steaming the leaves at a high temperature. Each process tends to bring out a more particular flavor from the tea leaves.

There are many different varieties of green tea in China, for example: BiLuoChun (named after the shape of the leaves, which are curled like snails), LongJing transl) ("Dragon Well" transl), Taiping Houkui and others.

For brewing generally use two grams of tea per 100 ml of water. Higher-quality teas use more tea leaves and are steeped multiple times for short durations. Steeping temperatures range from 61°C to 87°C and times from 30 seconds to three minutes.

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Storage. To retain freshness, green tea should be stored in a refrigerator in a sealed airtight container that completely blocks light and that you can remove as much air as possible. When green tea comes in contact with oxygen its catechins starts to oxidize, making them less effective as antioxidants.

Vitamins. Tea is a natural antioxidant, and rich in vitamins: it contains vitamins B2, B1 and B6. Tea, however, is also rich in potassium, manganese, folic acid and calcium.

Matcha. Finely ground powder of specially grown and processed green tea. It is special in two aspects of farming and processing: the green tea plants for matcha are shade-grown for about three weeks before harvest, and the stems and veins are removed in processing. Zen Buddhism and the Chinese methods of preparing powdered tea were brought to Japan in 1191 by the monk Eisai. Some time later loose tea became more popular in China, but powder tea remained popular in Japan.