3 Ways of Making Matcha at Home

When I got my first Matcha latte at a coffee shop, I paid very little attention to the crafting process and was suddenly handed a cup that looked like green milk – I was intrigued. Little did I know this would be the beginning of my Matcha journey. At that moment in time, I too focused on the enjoying the new taste and the uniqueness of matcha to think about how it actually morphed from powder to tea.

After solidifying my love for Matcha and understanding its benefits, I decided to venture into understanding how it was actually made. This of course had a purpose – I wanted to make it myself. Sitting by my window with a matcha latte in my hands while reading a book was the picture that I wanted for myself.

I started doing a bit of research, and if you’re like me, you might have ventured into the ceremonial aspects of creating tea, which require very specific items that were not available in my nearby shops! While these items did look like beautiful craftmanship worthy of purchasing, I also wanted to understands if there were different ways I could transform the powder into tea. With this in mind – I’ve written this blog to introduce you to 3 different methods of making matcha from your own home!

Ingredients for 1cup (this applies to all methods):

• ¼- ½ teaspoon of mathca powder (ideally ceremonial!)
• 200 ml of hot water around 80^o C – we will use 60 ml to make the tea and the rest will be for heating up the chawan and chasen!

Method 1: The Traditional Method – The Bamboo Whisk

This is the authentic method of making matcha. It has several tools that are required in order to keep its purity:

From left to right:

• Chashaku (bamboo scoop)
• Chawan (tea bowl)
• Chasen (bamboo whisk)

And now, without further ado – let’s make some matcha!

1. Add 140 ml of the hot water to the Chawan. Next, take your Chansen and dip it into the teabowl repeatedly in a slow but firm landing for about 8-10 seconds. This process is to preheat the bowl Chawan and the Chansen. You’ll see this step a lot in traditional tea ceremonies, as it helps the tea bowl retain less heat during the whisking process later on. After the 10 seconds are done, put the Chasen aside, discard the hot water, and dry the Chawan bowl with a paper towel.
   
   
2. Using the Chashaku, gently take out one to two scoops of matcha powder and add it to the Chawan (Use 2 scoops for a stronger taste!). Then, pour 60ml of hot water into the Chawan.
   
   
3. Grab your Chasen once again as we will start to whisk. Hold the Chansen with one hand and the Chansen whisk in the other. Use a back and forth motion, whisk the tea quickly in a back and forth motion that is both gentle and firm – do this for about 20 seconds. Do not do a circular motion and focus on creating “M” or “W” shapes with your whisk movement. At the end of this stage, your matcha should have a perfect foam top!

4. Now your matcha is ready to be used! 

Special Notes:

• Make sure the water is at 80^o If you don’t have a temperature control in your heater, let it cool for 2-3 minutes, allowing it to cool. Else, the tea might come out bitter!

Method 2: The Milk Frother

If you have a milk frother, this is a quick and easy alternative to prepare matcha. It is very convenient for those who are on the go and do not have as much time in their preparations! Here are the required steps for this method:

1. Start by adding 1/3 of a glass of cold water to your milk frother.
2. Add ¼ to ½ of a tea spoon of matcha to the milk frother
3. Turn on the milk frother on the shortest and lowest heat setting as possible.
4. Once the milk frother is done, your matcha is ready to go!

Special Notes:

• Only use a milk frother that says it can be used for tea or that specified the temperature it will heat up to.

Method 3: The Hand Frother

This is another one of our convenient alternatives! Hand frothers are more commonly found at the comfort of ones homes, so we hope this is an alternative that works for most of you. If this is not the case, this is also an alternative that can be found in your nearest supermarkets for a friendly price! Ahead are the steps to make matcha with the hand frother:

1. Add ¼ to ½ of a tea spoon of matcha to a TALL mug or glass
2. Add 60 ml of hot water into the glass or mug
3. Place your electric whisk inside and turn it on. Make gentle up and down motions to create the forth. Do this for around 15-20 seconds.
4. And voila, your matcha is ready! 

As you al can see, making Matcha at the comfort of your own home is achieveable! The process can be as ceremonial or as practical as you would want it to be, which doesn’t make it less special or less of a personal ritual. We believe everyone should be able to enjoy the soothing and luxurious experience of drinking matcha at the comfort of their own homes – and hopefully after reading this you can think this too. If you’re interested in trying this on your own, feel free to go into our product catalogue and start enjoying your matcha journey!