Matcha: The Perfect Match

Matcha, the bold green fine powder and the showpiece of Japanese tea ceremonies, has been heralded as one of the top 10 superfood for 2017¹, and certainly its healthy profile makes matcha a favorite of wellness seeking consumers. Loaded with antioxidants, matcha outshines its green tea counterparts at least 10:1 with 15 times the amount of L-theanine which is the amino acid that boosts the creative and learning part of the brain.

Typically, consumers are requesting matcha in their favorite coffee shop beverage but, we are seeing the velvety, green powder not only in sweet treats but savory menu items as well. Here’s how the herby, earthy and bright flavor of matcha plays nicely on both sides of the menu:

Savory

• Matcha miso ginger dressing over an Asian salad features two trends that work to make a savory and healthy dressing for greens, rice or an ancient grain / Epic Matcha.²

• Sweet joins savory in this pasta dish featuring farfalle tossed with matcha, zucchini, pistachios and raisins for a cross-cultural sauté of Asia and Italy / Apron and Sneakers.³

• Take a veggie based black bean burger and kick it up a few notches with a matcha aioli / Healthy Seasonal Recipes⁴

• Matcha-mole? Yes, please! Serve with sweet potato chips to satisfy the most in-depth snack attack / Never More Lane⁵

• Matcha cocktails and tea cocktails are one of the biggest trends. The Matcha Mule, famous for starting in Seattle many mules ago, ignited a firestorm of “matcha-tails” where its being used as a bitter like in The Garret’s (NYC) gin based First Lady.⁶

Sweet

• Bump up your next iced tea with matcha powder and pureed fresh watermelon. Layering the flavors makes for a fun, summertime presentation and gives a new definition to sweet tea / Oh How Civilized. ⁷

• Sencha Naturals Moroccan Mint Green Tea mints shows that matcha powder can help freshen breath and give consumers a health boost too.⁸

• Tea-rrific Ice Cream brand, based in Bridgeport, Connecticut, uses artisanal tea for their locally sourced frozen treat in flavors like Matcha Green Tea and Ginger Matcha.⁹

• SoCal Tarte Yogurt blends matcha and honey for a slightly sweet, yet balanced organic yogurt.¹⁰

• Chicago super coffee shop, Sawada, has a camo doughnut that turns matcha, caramel coffee, and sweet chocolate into an old-fashioned crispy classic.¹¹

We can’t help but do a little shameless plugging as we proudly announce the availability of our new 8770 Matcha Green Tea Powder. Give some a try in your next application – it’ll be a matcha-made in heaven.

Sources:

1. http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/national-survey-taps-over-1700-dietitians-to-predict-top-2017-food-trends-300376374.html
2. http://epicmatcha.com/autumn-asian-ginger-dressing-matcha-salad/?utm_source=pinterest&utm_medium=pin&utm_campaign=social-organic&utm_term=pinterest-followers&utm_content=blog-autumn-asian-ginger-dressing-matcha-salad
3. http://www.apronandsneakers.com/2011/06/farfalle-italiane-with-matcha-green-tea.html
4. http://www.healthyseasonalrecipes.com/black-bean-burgers-with-green-tea-basil-aioli/
5. http://nevermorelane.com/green-matcha-guacamole/
7. http://www.ohhowcivilized.com/iced-matcha-green-tea-watermelon/
8. https://www.senchanaturals.com/pages/green-tea-mints-all
9. https://tearrificicecream.com/
10. tarteyogurt.com
11. http://sawadacoffee.com/