Green Tea or Matcha: Main Differences and How to Choose
Green tea or matcha, which is better? Both have an intense green color, great health benefits, and are delicious. But when it comes to choosing, what are the differences between conventional green tea and matcha green tea powder?
Differences in processing
Matcha is a form of green tea , so both loose leaf green tea and matcha are made from the Camellia sinensis plant. Loose leaf green tea can be made from different varieties: Camellia sinensis var. sinensis and Camellia sinensis var. assamica, but matcha is always made from the sinensis tea plant.
Authentic matcha tea must come from Japan, while green tea can have very different origins , such as Japan, China, India or Taiwan.
Tea leaves used to make green tea are harvested and steamed or pan-fried to prevent oxidation and retain color, flavor, and health benefits. They are then rolled and dried. Matcha is different. The tea leaves are shade-grown for about three weeks before harvesting. After harvesting, the green tea leaves are steamed to prevent oxidation, then destemmed and deveined. This process results in small tea leaf flakes called tencha. The tencha is then stone-ground to obtain a fine tea powder, thus obtaining matcha.
Differences in taste
Matcha green tea powder and regular green tea share some flavor similarities . Both can have a certain astringency and sweetness. The flavor of both will depend on how they are prepared.
Green tea flavor
Green tea can have very different flavors : from robust, roasted, and smoky, to vegetal, fresh, and grassy. The flavor will depend on many factors. Japanese green teas are usually fresh, slightly sweet, slightly astringent, and grassy. Chinese green teas are usually light, roasted, and sweet, or strong, smoky, and malty.
Matcha flavor
What makes matcha unique is its balance of sweetness, astringency, and umami. Umami is a flavor specific to shade-grown teas: matcha, gyokuro, and dragon well. Matcha can taste sweeter or more bitter, with stronger or weaker umami, vegetal and fresh. These differences in matcha flavor depend on the quality of the matcha, or grade. If you'd like to learn more about matcha grades, read our Matcha Tea Guide .
Differences in preparation
Green tea is infused, while matcha is simply brewed . To make a cup of green tea, the tea leaves are steeped in water. The hot water extracts the flavor, color, catechins, caffeine, L-theanine, and other compounds, and we then remove the leaves before drinking it. But with matcha, the powder is thoroughly mixed with water.
To prepare a cup of green tea, you need a teapot or strainer and a cup. To prepare matcha, you need a special bamboo whisk, a chasen, and a matcha bowl, or chawan. The matcha is dissolved in water and frothed with a whisk. Green tea is simply steeped by pouring hot water over the tea leaves and straining them before serving.
If you want to learn how to prepare loose green tea, you can read How to prepare loose tea?
If you want to learn how to make matcha tea , go to How to Make Matcha Tea?
Differences in benefits
Both matcha and green tea can offer numerous health benefits. Matcha is sometimes considered healthier than regular green tea because the whole leaf is consumed . Studies show it can contain several times more catechins than green tea. But this will ultimately depend on the tea being compared. Not all teas are created equal, and it's not impossible to get more antioxidants from regular green teas.
Both matcha and green tea contain theine, amino acids, chlorophyll, and catechins. They can be excellent for increasing energy, aiding weight loss, preventing oxidative damage, having anticancer properties, reducing inflammation, and protecting teeth. Due to their high L-theanine content, they may also help reduce stress.
A cup of matcha is likely to contain more theine and EGCG than a cup of regular loose-leaf tea. This is because the matcha is simply dissolved in hot water, rather than steeped. However, there are some green teas with an antioxidant concentration almost as high as matcha, such as Dragon Well green tea .
RELATED INFORMATION
Origin of green tea and matcha
Green tea was first discovered in China. Legend has it that the Chinese emperor Shen Nong discovered this magical beverage when a tea leaf fell into his cup. A few thousand years later, tea became a very important beverage throughout the world.
Long ago, tea in China was powdered and compressed, and drunk differently than today, similar to matcha. Other flavorings were also added. Matcha didn't reach Japan until the 12th century. It was brought to Japan in the 12th century by a Buddhist monk, Eisai. The Japanese mastered matcha production, and it became a beverage of great importance. Today, matcha is served at tea ceremonies and added to many sweets, desserts, and savories. Although the authentic matcha tea produced today comes from Japan, it was the Chinese who brought it to this country.
About 800 years ago, the Chinese invented another tea production method: pan-firing. This remains the primary method for making Chinese green tea. The oldest type of green tea is likely also Dragon Well, a delicious and unique fire-fired Chinese green tea that remains one of the finest and most popular green teas in the world.
How to choose between green tea or matcha?
Matcha is a beverage meant to be enjoyed slowly. It requires patience and skill to make a perfect bowl. On the other hand, green tea may be easier to prepare, but it still requires patience to prepare properly.
If you want to cook with tea, opt for matcha . You can add it to smoothies, cakes, lattes, frappes, desserts, and even blend it with other teas, such as genmaicha. It has an umami flavor that can add freshness and a unique note to desserts. However, matcha may not be the best tea if you want to make large quantities of iced tea. Regular loose-leaf green tea is great for that purpose.
In short, I recommend that you try both at some point, since depending on your taste, some people prefer green tea or matcha, and there is no bad option, since both teas will provide you with a large number of benefits.
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