Green tea powder: Brewing instant health

For some time, I had been worrying about the fact that drinking green tea from a teabag meant I was consuming more caffeine, until I came across green tea powder. That is not to say the powder form is a modern discovery. Research tells me that the Chinese invented powdered tea sometime in the 10^th or 11^th century, and the discovery spread to Japan through Buddhism, only the Japanese called it Zen. The Japanese were so enthusiastic about the powder that a 16^th century tea master called Sen no Rikyu, who put together the rules of Japan’s celebrated tea ceremony, specified that matcha (green tea powder) was the only tea to use for this ceremony.

How is green tea powder made? Glad you asked, because I’m dying to tell. About three/four weeks before harvest, the tea bushes are sheltered from direct sunlight. Not only does this slow down the growth, it also turns the leaves a darker shade of green and generates amino acids that make the tea sweeter.

After harvesting, when the leaves are laid out to dry, they crumble and are known as tencha. The tencha is then ground to the fine, bright green powder known as matcha, which roughly has the consistency of talcum powder. I found that the most famous matcha-producing region in Japan is Nishio on the island of Honshu. This tea is specifically called Nishiocha.

Infusing green tea powder in water involves pouring about 2 gm of the green tea powder in about two cups of water, add yogurt or milk or sugar as you like, and stirring for a short time. That’s it, and in return, you get to drink one of the healthiest beverages in the world. During my research, I came upon a companys site that I've mentioned throughout this site that offers a product called GreenTea 300, which uses green tea powder as one of its ingredients. I can tell you that GreenTea 300 is an instant beverage that will burn maximum fat when used in combination with The GreenTea 300 Diet & Exercise Program.™ Naturally, GreenTea 300 is zero calorie and is available in six flavors: original, lemon, raspberry, plum, cider, and peach. Sound delicious? It didn’t take me long to order my supply online.

Research across the world has shown that green tea offers numerous health benefits. To begin with, green tea contains antioxidants that fight free radicals, which cause cell damage and ageing. In addition, green tea combats cancer-causing carcinogens, and also reduces blood pressure and blood sugar levels. Very importantly, the fat-burning abilities of green tea make it an excellent weight loss aid. And green tea powder is obviously the most concentrated form of the beverage. So if you use green tea powder to supplement your weight loss program, you can be absolutely sure of zero side effects and clear results.

Green tea powder is finely available from both Japan and China, and, as I mentioned earlier, you can buy it as GreenTea 300. Because it is so easy to use, green tea powder is also used in various health food recipes. In Japan, for instance, matcha is used to dye foods green (e.g. soba noodles), and also to prepare green tea ice cream and a lot of confectionery. Green tea pastries, anyone?

So you see, green tea powder has everything going for it. Did I mention that it is also rich in vitamins C and E? Probably not, but I can’t stop when I start talking about green tea powder so don’t mind me.