Besides sweet chocolate, green tea is one of the most popular bakery flavours. But many people who want to use green tea in their bakes may not know which kind of green tea is the right one to use.
Green tea comes in two forms: leaf tea and powdered tea. Most people know powdered green tea as matcha, a high-quality green tea powder that differs from ordinary green tea powder in every step, from how the tea is grown to how it is processed and stored.
Leaf or Powder for Baking?
Both leaf and powdered green tea can be used in baking. Leaf tea must first be brewed in hot water and strained before use. Powdered tea is more popular because it is more versatile: it can be used dry or brewed and used as a liquid.
If you use green tea powder, choose 100% pure green tea powder with no added milk, creamer or sugar. Many instant green tea powders today contain milk or creamer, which means adding ingredients your recipe doesn't call for and lowering the proportion of green tea.
Choose Good-Quality Green Tea
For baking, use good-quality green tea, whether in powder or liquid form, as it gives better colour, aroma and flavour without bitterness. 100% matcha is ideal because it gives a beautiful colour, lovely aroma and better taste, even though it costs more.
Some leaf teas, such as konacha, are leaves ground so finely that they look like powder. Don't confuse them with powdered tea: using leaf tea in place of powder in desserts makes them very bitter, and the leaf particles won't dissolve, leaving sediment.
Today there is a wide range of green tea powders for baking, in many grades, qualities, prices and brands, including 100% matcha, regular green tea powder and blended matcha, with blends varying by brand. You can choose whichever suits your taste and budget, but if you use poor-quality tea, your bakes will look dull and less appetising.
