Matcha has definitely found its way to us by now. The green tea ground into powder is versatile and you can experiment a lot with it. In this article, we take a look at what you can try with cooking matcha.
Snacking
Green cookies, green ice cream and more! Here are three simple ideas for those with a sweet tooth:
Matcha ice cream
You can also buy matcha ice cream in small supermarkets in Japan. What is an everyday food there is still a specialty in this country. Why not make your own matcha ice cream for hot days? For water ice, you can fill cooled matcha tea into suitable containers and place them in your freezer until the contents are frozen. For creamier ice cream, you can mix products such as quark or yoghurt with matcha powder and freeze them. Both variants taste particularly delicious if you sweeten them a little. Herbs such as lemon balm or mint go well with it. You can either chop them up and stir them in before freezing or add whole leaves on top as decoration when serving. Citrus fruits such as lemon, lime or orange also work well in green ice cream. Try it out for yourself!
Green baking pleasure
Green cakes, muffins and the like - looks strange to us at first. But matcha lovers will be pleased to hear that the ground green tea can be stirred wonderfully into batter and creams. So you can not only try out new recipes, but also spice up your existing favorites. Marble cake, for example, looks particularly chic if you color the light-colored batter green with a little matcha. A sponge roulade or cheesecake are also suitable for an easy start in the matcha baking world. Small amounts of powder (1 to 2 tablespoons) are often enough to color the whole dough. Don't be put off by the fact that the dough smells a little strongly of green tea when raw. This intense smell disappears during the baking process and the finished cake smells much more appetizing.
Chocolates with a green touch
There are now a whole host of recipes for pralines. As a beginner, you can add a little matcha to the filling or sprinkle the powder decoratively over the finished pralines. That alone makes a big visual impact. If you want to cover your chocolates in a green coating, you can add a little matcha powder to melted white chocolate and dip the finished chocolates in it.
Drinks
In addition to the traditional preparation of matcha tea, there are other options:
Matcha latte
Matcha latte - a classic! For this you need about 1/2 teaspoon of matcha powder, 50 ml of hot water and 200 ml of frothed plant-based drink (e.g. soy, almond or rice). You can also use normal cow's milk.To ensure that your matcha latte does not contain any lumps, first place the powder in a small bowl and pour in the hot water. Stir until the green powder has dissolved well. The typical matcha whisk works particularly well. Now pour the mixed liquid into a heat-resistant glass or cup and then add the foamed soy milk. You can sweeten your matcha latte with honey or agave syrup to taste.
Matcha summer drink
It doesn't always have to be just a hot drink. For hot summer days, you can use the cold version instead of the frothed plant-based drink (see Matcha latte) and enjoy the green drink with ice cubes. Coconut water or a little lime juice, for example, also go well with the summer drink. If you prefer it sweet, you can sweeten your summer matcha drink with cane sugar, xylitol or erythritol.
Matcha in a smoothie
A typical smoothie is made by mixing fruit or vegetables, liquid (e.g. juice, water, plant-based drink) with herbs, spices, nuts or seeds. Matcha powder also goes well in your smoothie and gives it a nice green color. Sweet fruits, such as banana or pineapple, go particularly well to provide a contrast to the somewhat bitter taste of green tea. Perhaps start with a little less matcha powder to begin with and feel your way slowly. Plant-based drinks with almond or soy go particularly well with the green tea powder.
Hearty dishes
There is also room for green tea powder in savory dishes. We have picked out two examples for you:
Noodles with matcha
You can actually buy soba noodles with matcha. These go well with zucchinis, ginger, besam, soy sauce, citrus fruits and mint, for example. If you don't have ready-made matcha noodles to hand, you can spice up normal soba noodles (or any other type of noodle) with a little matcha powder yourself. Simply stir in after cooking and season to taste.
Green hummus
Green hummus with matcha! Either add some matcha to your favorite recipe for natural hummus or use this version here: Approx. 1 tin of chickpeas (or leave dried chickpeas to soak overnight), 1 tbsp sesame butter, 2 tbsp lime or lemon juice, 40 g fresh spinach leaves, 2 tsp matcha powder and 2 tbsp olive oil. It is best to put all the ingredients in a blender and season the finished green hummus with salt and pepper.
