Today, green tea is sold in any store. It is a sin to complain about the assortment of this drink, dozens of varieties and brands are presented on the counters. You buy them, brew and often do not feel the difference between them. How to choose green tea, which you can enjoy?
How to choose high-quality green tea
It is not necessary to focus on the shelf life, which is indicated on the packaging. Very often, it does not coincide with the date of collection of tea leaves. For example, if a year has passed after collecting the leaf, then this tea is considered old. You can determine the freshness of the product, only after brewing.
The drink should be transparent, and if the tea is cloudy, then it is just old.
Let us dwell on the marking:
- Cost Everything is easy here; premium class is an expensive product; medium and economy class is cheap tea;
- Packaging. Tea is packaged in soft packaging made of cellophane, cardboard boxes, in tin, ceramic and wooden containers. As a rule, elite varieties of green tea are packed in expensive boxes;
- Green tea manufacturer. Indicates the country in which the tea is grown. This could be: India, Kenya, Vietnam, China, Ceylon and Indonesia. Just below there is information about the country in which tea is packed. Give preference to tea packaged in the country where it is grown;
- What's inside the package. Know that in good tea there should be no broken leaves and especially shanks. It must be dry and free from mold. Tea leaves are twisted, when brewed, they are revealed and not twisted. Good tea has emerald green and pistachio color - depends on the variety;
- Classification inside green tea. It can be loose (granular or sheet), flavored, pressed and in bags. Manufacturers of high-end varieties promise that their crushed leaf in sachets does not differ in quality from leaf tea. Well, and the varieties are cheap, mostly contain waste from tea production (seeding and dust);
- The size of the tea leaf. On any package the size of the tea leaf is indicated: large, small, granulated. They are designated as follows: English abbreviation of leaf tea contains the letter "P", but excludes the letter "B", for example, PS, GFOP, broken tea contains the letter "P" along with the letter "B", for example, BOP, FBOP and baby, here look for the letter "D", for example, BOPD, GD;
- Where better to buy. If you want to try a good quality tea, it is better to buy it in a specialty store that is directly related to a large tea company. It is very risky to buy in small departments that rent in stores, usually in them the storage conditions are violated, which is not acceptable for such a capricious product. Another advantage of the specialized point is a large selection, sometimes up to 200 varieties of premium class only. Plus, sales assistants will tell about the features of a particular type of tea.
The choice of teapot, water, proportions, technology
Good tea is a good teapot. Ideally, it should be porcelain or clay, metal teapots are absolutely excluded. According to the rules, green tea is brewed before use and immediately drunk. That is, there is no separate vessel, all are brewed in one kettle, from which they are poured into cups.
Use only soft and clean water, because first of all, the quality of the water that you pour into the teapot affects the taste of tea. Even the most elite type of tea can be spoiled by hard water.
Before using the porcelain or clay teapot, rinse with boiling water. For each cup of future tea you will need one teaspoon of tea leaves plus one spoon as a “gift” for the teapot.
Now it's time to catch boiling water, namely, a moment, 20 seconds before the active boil, when the water becomes turbid and a large number of bubbles appear, is called the white key. And don't miss it. The most delicious tea is brewed with a "white key". For green teas, the water temperature is about 70-90 degrees.
After five minutes, drain the first water and brew again. It is the second portion of water that will provide the drink with a rich aroma and taste. And the first water only opens the tea leaf, prepares it to give all the most valuable.
Brewing green tea is 2 minutes. We remind you: milk never improves the taste of tea, only vice versa neutralizes the action of useful substances.
And also do not add honey, when heated in hot tea, it releases substances that cause the development of cancer.
How to brew leaf green tea right in the mug
The mug should be clean and warm, meaning it will be porcelain. Rinse it with boiling water before brewing. Put 3 grams of tea leaves in a cup and pour hot water (temperature, approximately 90 ºC), and it will take another 5 minutes to wait for the desired infusion.
Surprisingly, if you brew tea in a mug in different ways, then the taste of the drink will change. We recommend making tea in three ways:
- in a heated glass pour the tea leaf, pour water;
- pour one third of the water into the mug, put the tea leaves and add water;
- pour water into a mug and pour the tea leaf on top.
How to brew green oolong milk tea
Processing technology turns the same tea leaves into drinks with different flavors. For oolong, the tea leaves are dried and then softly twisted, then cooked in boxes or special woks.
The most elite oolong is roasted on the coals of a fruit tree, it gives the tea leaf a special taste. In this operation - the whole point of the quality of oolong.
How to cook it. Rinse the kettle with hot water. To fill up the dry brew for the teapot (volume 150 ml) you will need 7 grams (1 tablespoon with a slide), close and shake gently so that the leaves are distributed throughout the teapot.
Pour the leaves with hot water, not boiling water, the approximate temperature of 90-95 degrees. Drain the first brew, then refill the kettle. To insist on a drink is not necessary. Quality oolong brewed up to 25 times.
How to brew Chinese and other green tea
Where did the Chinese tea come from? It is quite obvious that in other countries they learned about this drink from the Chinese. It is interesting to know that they collect a tea leaf on a camellia Chinese tree. Plantations are on hills and plains.
How to brew Chinese tea and other types of green tea:
- You can not pour boiling water, otherwise it will immediately give bitterness. The water should cool down a little, so remove the kettle on the white key stage and cool it a little (up to 70-85 degrees);
- What is the white key? The Chinese call it the degree of boiling water: the first bubbles on the surface - the crab's eye, as it increases - the fisheye. Then pearl threads are formed and stretch upwards, as soon as they start to beat with the key, they are immediately removed from the fire;
- Do not put a large amount of tea leaves. There are many useful components in tea, and it is wrong to think that the stronger the infusion, the more useful it is;
- Before brewing the kettle, pour boiling water over the kettle, pour the tea with already prepared water. The first infusion is drained and it is not even a ritual, but ordinary hygiene, because it is not known how and where the leaves dried;
- It is important to follow the rule: water and tea leaves should not be long together. The Chinese claim that after 40 minutes it becomes a snake venom.
Rules of etiquette
Tea drinking is inextricably linked with many traditions, the meaning of which the ordinary person does not understand, but still tries to observe them. Each country has its own particular style of tea drinking, but one thing is common to any tea ceremony - the drink is simply created to communicate with each other, it really unites.
If we are talking about green tea, then we will talk about Chinese tea, which is fanned by various legends. In China, there are a million traditions and all sorts of rules. The tea ceremony is a very expensive pleasure, houses are specially built for it, a wonderful garden around them.
It is these attributes that create an atmosphere of "admiring" nature and tea. Yes, and the time the ceremony lasts a long time.
First, slow brewing of green tea, a serious approach to the choice of dishes. A clay teapot only, so that tea can breathe. And then a long and thoughtful tea party can be said, which is accompanied by unhurried conversations and philosophical reflections. And of course, no milk, granulated sugar and lemons. One green tea.
How to brew and drink green tea for weight loss
Everyone knows that many people recover even from water, and many people eat cakes without consequences. The tendency to corpulence depends on the rate of metabolism (metabolism). Green tea can affect the speed of these processes.
In order to lose weight enough to drink just one cup of green tea per day. But only in the morning or in the afternoon. Brew tea before drinking and beat the same drink.
Tea traditions, facts, tips
The traditions of tea drinking are not inferior to the Egyptian pyramids. At first, the Chinese used tea as medicine, and only after many centuries, as early as the 8th century AD, the principles of tea drinking were set forth in the treatise Canon Tea.
Each country, when received a drink, creatively reworked new traditions. So, in England introduced the custom of drinking tea at 5 o'clock. In America, chilled tea was invented. And Russia became famous for the invention of the samovar.
Let us dwell on the facts:
- In terms of frequency of use, tea ranks second after water;
- The tea leaf is collected and sorted by hand; for a premium-grade drink, an unblown kidney and a young leaf are broken, cheaper teas are made from a mature leaf;
- Any varieties of tea, including green tea, are made from the leaves of one Camellia Sinensis plant;
- With one tea bush collect all kinds of tea. The variety depends on fermentation. If it lasts 2 days, it turns green, if 3 weeks - black;
- The maximum amount of caffeine in 1 cup of black tea is 35 mg, and in a cup of green tea - 20 mg. From 1 kg of leaves you can brew 400 cups of your favorite drink;
- More than three million tons of tea is produced annually in the world (1.3 ml is produced in China, slightly less than one million in India, followed by Turkey and Kenya);
- China is the only country that produces, in addition to black and green, white, yellow, turquoise (oolong), and pu-erh;
- In Russia, tea appeared in 1638, when Tsar Mikhail Fedorovich was brought a present from a Mongol khan.
Five helpful tips:
- Despite all the advantages of green tea, doctors do not recommend drinking it more than 3 cups per day. The fact is that green tea has a diuretic effect and, when it is used excessively, it flushes out useful calcium from the body, which leads to a decrease in bone density;
- If you want less caffeine in the drink, then pour out the first brew. Excess caffeine will go away with boiling water;
- A cup of tea after meals activates the digestive process;
- Green tea should be stored in an airtight container, for example in a ceramic or tin can, the storage temperature should be room temperature;
- Do not store tea in glass containers, as the sun's rays are harmful to him.
Follow the recommendations and drink tea for health!
About how useful green tea can be found in the following video.
