What is hōjicha?
Hōjicha is a Japanese green tea that is roasted after it is made. The roasting turns the leaf from green to reddish brown and gives the cup a warm, toasted character. In Japan it is commonly served with meals and in the evening.
How it is made
Like other Japanese green teas, the leaves are first steamed and dried. They are then roasted, traditionally over charcoal or in a porcelain pan, and today usually in a rotating roaster. The roast develops the toasted aroma and softens the bitterness of green tea.
Hōjicha is usually made from bancha, which is later-harvest leaf, or from kukicha, which is stems. It is generally said to have originated in Kyoto in the 1920s, when tea merchants began roasting leftover leaves and stems.
Leaf or powder
Hōjicha comes in two forms:
- Loose leaf, which is steeped like any other tea.
- Powder, which is stone-milled and whisked like matcha. Powder is the form used for lattes.
Hōjicha and matcha
Both are Japanese green teas, but they are made in opposite ways. Matcha comes from tencha, leaves that are shaded before harvest to keep them green and rich in umami, then milled raw. Hōjicha is defined by the roast, which replaces the fresh, vegetal character with notes closer to toasted grain, nuts or cacao.
Caffeine
Hōjicha is often lower in caffeine than other green teas. The main reason is that it is usually made from mature leaves and stems, which contain less caffeine than young leaves. The level depends on the base tea, so it varies from one hōjicha to another.
How to prepare it
- Loose leaf: 3 to 4 g with 150 ml of water at 90 to 95°C, steeped for around 30 seconds.
- Powder: whisk 2 to 3 g with 60 to 70 ml of water at around 80°C. For a latte, add 130 to 150 ml of oat or coconut milk.
Our hōjicha
Ours comes from Tsujiki Seicha in Shirakawa, Uji, the only tencha producer ever honored by the Emperor of Japan. Tsujiki harvests only once a year. This hōjicha is made from the stems and leaves left over from that harvest. They are roasted slowly at a low temperature, then stone-milled in the traditional way .Notes of cacao and nuts, with no ashy or smoky tones as it is not roasted at high temperature like most other Hojicha.
