Matcha Frequently Asked Questions
We often receive email from customers asking about our matcha. In this post, we will list down some of the frequently asked questions.
1. Which Matcha is good for weight loss?
All our matcha help in weight loss. But considering you will be drinking it without adding sugar, you should pick at least classic grade matcha such as our Harumi Classic Matcha. Higher grade matcha has good sweetness and more suitable for drinking without adding sugar or milk. If you has more budget, you may try our Ceremonial grade. Ceremonial grade has the highest sweetness and almost no bitterness, you will enjoy drinking it without adding anything.
Higher grade matcha such as ceremonial grade Matcha has higher L-thenine which has many health benefits.
2. Which Matcha should i use for my recipe (baking, cheese cake, latte) ?
For food or dessert making, culinary grade matcha is the most commonly used. In food making process, you will be adding lot of other ingredients, therefore you need Matcha with strong flavor and high bitterness in order to stand out. Besides, matcha you pick should have the matcha fragrance too.
Low grade matcha has strong taste and high bitterness, but often it taste grassy and low matcha fragrance, which make the food taste so dull. A good culinary matcha should have strong taste as well as good matcha fragrance too, such as our Meiko Uji Matcha.
High grade matcha not suitable for baking because it has milder taste which can be easily covered by other ingredients, and it's much more expensive. If you want to create something that has the good color and the natural taste of Matcha, use high grade matcha and increase the amount used.
3. What is the expiration date of matcha?
Matcha doesn't expire, it will only degrade over time (by turining yellow and taste bitter). Normally the best time to consume the matcha is 1-3 months after you open it and kept under room temperature. If you keep it in the fridge or freezer, the best before date can be extended to 6 months to 1 year.
Read : Matcha storage instructions
4. Do I need to use matcha whisk to make matcha tea?
It's not compulsory, but highly recommended. Matcha doesn't dissolve in water so easily (read Why matcha is difficult to dissolve in water), without proper whisking, most likely the clumps will not break down and you will be drinking some "matcha ball". The overall taste and drinking experience will be totally different without proper whisking.
5. Why organic matcha is more expensive but taste not as good compare to same priced non-organic matcha?
Organic matcha is produced from Tencha grown in tea farm regulated by the strict organic standard, only fertilizers that meet the standard can be used in the cultivation process. The tea tree do not have enough energy to produce tea leaf with good sweetness. In order to get an organic matcha with good sweetness, you need to pay more. Try our Genki Organic Ceremonial Matcha.
Please send us your question if you have any.