![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
cyranoThere is a lot of tea talk below this cut.
It has been recently pointed out to me that five cups of green tea a day are supposed to have a beneficial impact on a variety of maladies*, and it was suggested that I consider adding the stuff to my diet. In further research, I found that there were a great number of rules about brewing and drinking green tea, not all of which are just because it's Japanese and it's cool. Some of them could impact the taste, which is one of my primary objections.
The most important consideration is temperature--the water should be brought to a boil, then cooled before tea is added to it. The tea should be removed after steeping two or three minutes, to reduce the bitterness. And the hardest one for me, the tea should not be stirred, shaken, agitated or annoyed while it steeps. In. Sit. Out.
Even green tea has a little caffeine, so I'm going to try to avoid having it after work.
First experiment: Green Tea Chai
I was hoping that the chai element would help mask the flavor. Alas, I think the water was too hot, and I added the water to the tea rather than adding the tea to the water. Overall, there was a bit of a spicy flavor, with an undercurrent of mulched grass and definite bitterness.
Second experiment: Green Tea Chai
Paid more attention to temperature and ritual. Much less bitter, also much less spicy. Slightly grassy hot water is not a bad deal if it's supposed to be good for me. However, I'm still going to try a slight variation--a bag of green tea and a bag of one of my infusions, either mint or cinnamon spice.
*Cancer. High cholesterol. Arthritis. Heart disease. Infection. Weakened immune system. Obesity. Tooth decay. Diabetes. Stroke. Dementia. Also, not having had any tea.
It has been recently pointed out to me that five cups of green tea a day are supposed to have a beneficial impact on a variety of maladies*, and it was suggested that I consider adding the stuff to my diet. In further research, I found that there were a great number of rules about brewing and drinking green tea, not all of which are just because it's Japanese and it's cool. Some of them could impact the taste, which is one of my primary objections.
The most important consideration is temperature--the water should be brought to a boil, then cooled before tea is added to it. The tea should be removed after steeping two or three minutes, to reduce the bitterness. And the hardest one for me, the tea should not be stirred, shaken, agitated or annoyed while it steeps. In. Sit. Out.
Even green tea has a little caffeine, so I'm going to try to avoid having it after work.
First experiment: Green Tea Chai
I was hoping that the chai element would help mask the flavor. Alas, I think the water was too hot, and I added the water to the tea rather than adding the tea to the water. Overall, there was a bit of a spicy flavor, with an undercurrent of mulched grass and definite bitterness.
Second experiment: Green Tea Chai
Paid more attention to temperature and ritual. Much less bitter, also much less spicy. Slightly grassy hot water is not a bad deal if it's supposed to be good for me. However, I'm still going to try a slight variation--a bag of green tea and a bag of one of my infusions, either mint or cinnamon spice.
*Cancer. High cholesterol. Arthritis. Heart disease. Infection. Weakened immune system. Obesity. Tooth decay. Diabetes. Stroke. Dementia. Also, not having had any tea.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
Reminds me of this nifty graph I saw once...
Date: 2011-01-31 11:24 pm (UTC)Looks like evidence for green tea is strong on cholesterol, middling to weak on other conditions (click the bubbles to see the studies).
But basically, if you like it, drink away!
Re: Reminds me of this nifty graph I saw once...
Date: 2011-01-31 11:58 pm (UTC)Re: Reminds me of this nifty graph I saw once...
Date: 2011-02-01 01:41 am (UTC)Re: Reminds me of this nifty graph I saw once...
Date: 2011-02-01 01:58 am (UTC)