Although matcha is still prepared with all its time-honoured traditions in Japanese tea ceremonies today, this vibrant jewel-toned ingredient has now become commonplace throughout Asia. Masters of these ceremonies use the best matcha leaves that are handpicked from the top of the tea plant, having been grown in the shade for several months to boost their chlorophyll content. The leaves are then inspected, lightly steamed and ground to an ultra-fine powder on traditional stone grinders. To drink, the powder is mixed with a wooden whisk called a chasen, which resembles a shaving brush.

You can purchase matcha from tea stores all over Brisbane and begin to reap its many health benefits, which are said to include a healthy dose of essential vitamins and minerals, a high antioxidant content and a sustained energy boost. And, unlike coffee, matcha won’t give you any withdrawal symptoms should you decide to stop drinking it.

If you visit Japan and are not accustomed to sitting on bent knees for up to four hours – as is practised during tea ceremonies – you can instead sample matcha’s unique flavour in lattes, ice-creams, bagels, crepes, macarons and almost any kind of sweet indulgence imaginable. Often paired with adzuki beans to taste, matcha has also been embraced by many large companies and is now available in chain-store coffee shop beverages and well-known chocolate bars.

You can recreate these imaginative matcha recipes at home too. Seasoned matcha sippers may like to try using this ingredient creatively by whipping up a matcha latte or by flipping a batch of matcha pancakes. But we can’t guarantee the same health benefits will be gained from consuming a plate of macarons.

Image via Cook!.