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| HOW TO MAKE JASMINE TEA |
What do I have to do with Chinese Tea? Living in Malaysia - a food haven
with multicultural reflections, the region is open to Chinese Culture
in its unique form. And here I got the chance of tasting Chinese Tea.
While dining in Chinese Restaurants, they serve their unique tasting
Chinese Teas. I was literally fancied by the Tea sets and the Tea
making equipment that long back I collected a few items along with a
huge Antique Dragon-Turtle Tea Pot big enough to brew Chinese Tea for a
crowd.
Well, I am not a tea person, but still, I love to drink these
Chinese Teas when dining out in midst that I get heady to the drink(it makes me hyperactive). Especially, I love the Jasmine, Chrysanthemums & Rose
flavoured Chinese Teas prepared with dried flowers and Tea Leaves.
Mildly flavoured and rejuvenating to the senses. Jasmine tea is an exotically scented, sensually delicious, but a simple tea to make at home. Jasmine tea is one of the most famous teas in the world. Whether made
hot or cold, jasmine tea’s signature floral aroma makes it a great
choice to drink.
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| JASMINE |
Jasmine tea, one of the major types of flower tea
in China, is made by jasmine flowers and fresh tea leaves, so it has
both the aroma of jasmine flowers and the freshness of tea leaves. It is
welcomed by its strong fragrance, fresh flavour, tender and soft taste
and the rich benefits including preventing cancer, resist ageing,
relieving pain, and losing weight. Chinese jasmine tea was created
1,000 years ago in Fuzhou, Fujian, a southeast coastal province of
China.
What is Jasmine Tea?
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| HOW TO MAKE JASMINE TEA |
- Jasmine tea is a scented tea usually made from combining green tea leaves with jasmine petals.
- It has a delicate flavour and an exotic floral aroma.
- Sometimes made with white, oolong, or black tea.
- Jasmine tea is shaped into thin, rolled tea leaves or into balls (jasmine pearls).
How Jasmine Tea is scented:
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| JASMINE |
- Traditionally, this tea was scented by placing trays of fresh jasmine flowers below a woven tray of tea leaves in a warm room.
- Now, it’s common for the tea and flowers to be combined as the tea gets processed.
- High quality and more expensive jasmine tea is made with fresh jasmine flower buds.
- The more affordable and less expensive jasmine tea is made with jasmine extract.
- We can get it as Tea Leaves and Jasmine Buds mixed together.
- One best way is to steep the Tea Leaves along with fresh Jasmine flowers.
Which Jasmine Flower suits well for Jasmine Tea:
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ARABIAN JASMINE
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When choosing the right “jasmine” to scent your tea, choose that specifically of the Jasminum species such as Jasminum officinale, Jasminum sambac, or Jasminum polyanthum.
Fresh flowers serves best for the tea. I drop them directly
onto a layer of tea in a large jar with a wide opening. This can be
done indefinitely while jasmine is in bloom, layering the
blossoms between layers of tea. What is usually sold in market/stores, especially in Chinese shops, are the dried Jasminum Sambac or the common Arabian Jasmine Buds. You can buy them and mix along with your favourite tea. Some Tea varieties are sold mixed along with these dried Jasmine Buds.
*NOTE: Do not use “star
jasmine/confederate jasmine/jessamine” (Trachelospermum jasminoides) or “Carolina jessamine” (Gelsemium sempervirens) – which is toxic, not exotic.
HEALTH BENEFITS OF JASMINE TEA:
Relieves Pain: The volatile oily substances in jasmine tea can help you relieve the swelling pain, making your body at ease.
Anti-inflammation: Jasmine
tea can inhibit many kinds of bacteria. If you drink it or apply it to
the inflamed area, you can get recovered from pinkeye, ulcer
and skin ulceration.
Good Skin: Chinese jasmine tea can help
resist ageing and relative problems like facial dehydration and
blemished skin to keep the skin clean, white, soft and tender.
Prevents Cancer: Jasmine tea contains tea polyphenols and tea pigments, tea also contains selenium,
molybdenum, manganese, germanium etc. which can help in preventing
cancer caused by the insufficiency of manganese and redundancy of copper
in potable water. Jasmine green tea is believed to reduce risks of
breast cancer, lung cancer, and many other diseases.
Get rid of tiredness: Theine
in tea can stimulate the central nervous system and plays a vital role in getting rid of drowsiness, eliminating fatigue, enhancing vitality and
concentrating thinking.
HOW TO MAKE CHINESE JASMINE TEA
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| HOW TO MAKE JASMINE TEA |
Few basic knowledge of Tea Brewing, a decent quality Tea & a bit
of patience is all you need for a good Chinese Tea, any Tea as a matter
of fact. The best Tea in the world can taste horrible if prepared
incorrectly, but even an inexpensive Tea can be more satisfying if
prepared in the best possible way. So remember these 7 little facts
before brewing any type of Teas.
- The quality of the Tea
- The quality of the Water
- Correct measurement
- Correct steeping temperature
- Correct steeping time
- Allowing the tea-leaf to expand fully
- Separating the leaf from the liquid at the end of the steeping process
Use the best tea that is available to you. Scoop the loose tea leaves from the tea canister. Measure the correct amount of tea & add it into the Teapot. I have added fresh Jasmine flowers along with the tea leaves while brewing this Jasmine Tea.
WATER:
- When making any tea, try to use fresh & good quality water. Water quality reflects greatly on the taste of the Tea.
- Always start with fresh water out of the tap, not water that has been previously boiled or has been sitting around.
- First, use a small amount of heated water to warm the Tea Pot and Tea Cups before beginning to make your tea.
- To prepare the Chinese Tea, heat water in a kettle.
CORRECT MEASUREMENT:
The amount of Tea and Water will vary on the type of tea, its quality, and the size of the teapot, but generally, 1 Teaspoon of tea leaves for every six ounces/3/4 Cups of water will do.
RIGHT WATER TEMPERATURE FOR TEA:
Different teas require different steeping temperatures. Using
the wrong steeping temperature is probably the most common error people
make when preparing tea. You can buy a thermometer to gauge temperature
or if you are experienced enough can look for visual clues. Heating
water to the proper temperature is important when making Chinese tea,
and ideal temperatures vary by tea type.
Raise the kettle to shoulder-length, and pour the hot Water into the Teapot over the tea leaves.
The water should be poured just above the teapot to not remove the
flavour from the tea leaves too quickly. After pouring the water, scoop
away any excess bubbles or tea leaves. Place the lid on the teapot.
BREWING TIME:
The size of the tea leaves and their quality determine the length of the
steeping time. A whole-leaf tea is steeped longer, and high-quality tea
has a shorter brewing time.
JASMINE TEA - WITH TEA LEAVES/TEA BAG:
Add fresh/dried Jasmine Flowers along with the tea leaves, or use store bought dried Jasmine Buds mixed along with the tea. You can simply make this Jasmine tea with Tea Bags too. Just let the flower and the tea bag steep for a few minutes and just enjoy the fragrant Jasmine tea in the simplest way.
ROOM FOR THE TEA LEAF TO EXPAND:
All teas require room for the leaf to expand greatly in size as it steeps. Make sure there is enough room for the leaf to expand up to 3-5 times in size.
SEPARATING THE LEAVES & FLOWERS:
After the tea has steeped the proper length of time, separate the tea leaves & the jasmine flowers
from the brewed Tea. Most teas will turn bitter if steeped too long.
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| HOW TO MAKE JASMINE TEA |
Gently transfer the brewed Jasmine Teas from the Tea Pot or from a jug into the Tea Cups.
It's finally time to drink the tea. Good etiquette dictates that tea
drinkers cradle the cup with both hands and enjoy the tea’s aroma before
taking a sip. Traditionally, the cup should be drunk in three sips of
different sizes. The first sip should be small; the second sip is the
largest, the main sip; the third is to enjoy the aftertaste and empty
the cup.
Enjoy The Pure Goodness of Chinese Jasmine Tea in an exotic way!!!
Wishing all my Chinese Friends a Happy Chinese New Year!
"Gong Xi Fa Chai"
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FOOD SAFETY:
Side Effects of Excessive Drinking
- Excessive drinking of Jasmine Tea will make you feel hungry, or even dizzy.
- It can be harmful to your intestines and prolong stomach digestion when you have it right after the meal.
- Jasmine Tea can cause calcium deficiency.
- It can cause endocrine disorder and menstrual disorder for female.
Does Jasmine Tea Contain Caffeine(Theine)?
Yes,
it does. Although caffeine in jasmine tea is not as much as coffee’s,
people with insomnia, hypertension, and arteriosclerosis are not
recommended to drink heavy jasmine tea or drink too much.
