How to prepare Japanese tea

 

Usucha (Light Matcha)

Pour a sufficient amount of hot water, beat quickly.

 

Although light tea requires an artistry of fine manners and various tools, you can enjoy casually even in everyday circumstances. A point to remember is that matcha must be strained in advance using a tea strainer. This helps to prevent the tea from lumping up. The per-person serving amount of matcha is 2 scoops, after placing in the cup, pour about 80ml of hot water and mix quickly with a tea whisk until fine bubbles appear.

 

Pour the hot water into the bowl to pre-warm.

 

Discard the hot water from the bowl, put 2 scoops of matcha into the bowl, carefully pour hot water at 90° C into the bowl.

 

Use the tea whisk to crush any lumps of tea, then beat quickly in a back and forth motion to mix.

 

Once finely formed, slow the beating motion, gradually lift the whisk from the tea as if writing a spiral from the center of the bowl, clockwise.

 

Put the bowl on your left hand, turn it clockwise, twice, by 45 degrees with each turn.  The face of the bowl should be shown to a guest. Use right hand to put it toward a guest to serve.