NO, THAT'S NOT POPCORN IN MY TEA!

japanese green tea with popped rice

Japanese green tea with popped rice (a.k.a. "Genmaicha", roasted rice tea) is absolutely delicious. The roasted brown rice imparts a nutty flavour to the tea. This is my favourite tea to drink with sushi. It's great with desserts because it cleanses your palate and it's fantastic on its own as a refreshing drink.

my jenaer teapot has a built-in gold filter: put your loose tea leaves here and you won't have floaters!

I like to purchase big bags of this type of green tea at the Asian market and it lasts me a long time. This type of green tea is not too grassy or bitter and it's the best kind to introduce to novice green tea drinkers. By the way, never add sugar or milk to green tea. It's almost as bad as pouring soy sauce on your white rice (my pet peeve). Not only are you negating the health benefits, you're muddying the flavour of the tea.

my favourite teapot: german designed, the jenaer glass teapot has a built in filter and warmer

Never mind about the antioxidant properties of green tea, or the fact that it helps fight tooth decay, cancer and heart disease. It's just a delicious drink in my opinion! I don't drink coffee at work but instead drink green tea continuously throughout the day. I hate coffee breath and green tea doesn't give you that. Instead, it fights halitosis!

the jenaer teapot is a functional piece of art

Green tea seems to be a panacea with all the disease-fighting properties some research claims it can have. It has cancer-fighting properties,reduces blood cholesterol, inhibits hypertention, balances blood sugar, kills bacteria and viruses,fights cariogenic bacteria (cavities) and prevents halitosis (bad breath). Green tea contains:

• Catechins (a core component) –a class of polyphenol found in tea which function as antioxidants
• Flavonoids - strengthen blood vessel walls. Prevents halitosis (bad breath).
• Fluoride - prevents cavities.
• Polysaccharides - lowers blood sugar.
• r-Amino Butyric Acid - lowers blood pressure .
• Vitamin-B Complex - aids carbohydrate metabolism .
• Vitamin-C - reduces stress. Prevents flu. Increases strength of the immune system
• Vitamin-E - acts as antioxidant. Regulates aging.
• Theanine (amino acid) - responsible for green tea’s delicious taste

Many people believe green tea can:

• Prevent and hasten recovery from colds and flu.
• Prevent bad breath (halitosis).
• Aid with the prevention and relief of type-two diabetes.
• Block key receptors in producing allergic reactions.
• Aid Parkinson's disease sufferers.
• Slow the HIV infection process.
• Maintain healthy fluid balance
• Relieve fatigue and stress.
• Boost the immune function of skin cells.
• Relieve and prevent arthritis.
• Reduce the risk of stroke.
• Prevent osteoporosis.
• Reduce DNA damage in smokers.
• Delay the signs of aging.
• Improve bone structure.
• Prevent dangerous blood-clotting.
• and to me most importantly: burn calories!- it has thermogenic properties which promote fat burning and increases energy expenditure.

I was loving green tea before all this hype about its health benefits, (and I drink all forms of tea)but now I'm hoping that all my green-tea drinking will prove to be my fountain of youth! ha ha! Actually, I'm addicted to the flavour primarily and it's a bonus that is has health benefits. It's nice to know my passion for green tea won't kill me, unlike all the baking I do using refined products like sugar and white flour! yikes!

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The tea store I purchased my Jenaer pot has since closed down, but I researched a bit and found that Herbal Republic in Vancouver sells Jenaer pots too.

Herbal Republic: 2418 Granville Street, Vancouver, BC, V6H 3G6, Canada

Tel (604) 263-2000 mailto:%20info@herbalrepublic.com