Brewing |

How to Make Japanese Tea to Share

Written on January 02, 2022 (updated on September 04, 2024)

It’s lunch, and a group of friends are over. You’re just about to sit down to eat, but you don’t have anything to drink!

Japanese green teas-sencha, gyokuro, genmaicha, and hojicha- pair really well with all sorts of lunches, from sandwiches to stews; burritos to bowls of salad.

Pick your favorite aroma, and with a kettle of hot water, you can have a pitcher full of tea ready to serve in about 3 minutes.

Recipe for Sharing (Gyokuro or Sencha)

Makes one pitcher

1. Measure the leaves

2 tbsp. (10 g / 0.35 oz)

Add tea leaves to a kyusu or teapot.

Silver tablespoon filled with dried rolled Ippodo premium Japanese green tea leaves with

2. Add boiling water

240 mL (8 oz)

100°C (212°F)

Pour boiling water to cover tea leaves.

Pouring hot steamy water from stainless steel tea kettle into brown clay side-handle Japanese Yakishime Kyusu on wood table

3. Brew

30 seconds

Brew without stirring or disturbing the tea leaves.

Pouring hot steamy water from stainless steel tea kettle into brown clay side-handle Japanese Yakishime Kyusu on wooden table

4. Repeat and serve

Pour out every last drop into a pitcher. Repeat steps 2-4 (with zero seconds brew time) until the pitcher is full.

Serve to your guests.

Pouring green tea from above from brown Yakishime clay kyusu teapot into large glass carafe with white Ippodo Tea engravings

Recommended Teas

Refreshing, brisk, green: Nichigetsu Sencha

Classic Japanese green tea with a balanced, medium body.

View item

White packaging with brown faux-painted details for Nichigetsu refreshing Japanese Sencha green tea 80g bag by Ippodo Tea Co.

Nichigetsu - 80g Bag

Medium & Snappy

$18

Misty, soft, green: Tekiro Gyokuro

Smooth green tea with depth. Less sharpness and astringency than sencha.

View item

White packaging bag for Tekiro Gyokuro by Ippodo Tea with grey pointillism teapot and red writing and designs

Tekiro - 50g

Light & Smooth

$23

Soothing, hearty, appetizing: Genmaicha

Popular fragrant blend of green tea and roasted rice.

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White and blue simple packaging and Japanese characters for Ippodo Tea Co. Kuki Hojicha roasted bancha green tea stems

Genmaicha - 100g

Light & Soothing

$13

Roasted, malty: Hojicha

Unique roasted green tea with a satisfying fragrance.

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White simple packaging with Japanese characters for Ippodo Tea Co. Gokujo Hojicha roasted green tea leaves and stems

Hojicha - 100g

Light & Sweet

$15

Recommended Utensils

Hakuji Kyusu

An original Ippodo design, this kyusu teapot produces a delicate, refined taste.

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Front view of sleek refined snow white glazed porcelain symmetrical shape Japanese Hasami-yaki kyusu teapot

Hakuji Kyusu (Hasami-yaki) - 10oz

For Loose Leaf Teas

$100

Glass Carafe

Medium sized vessel with a lid for serving tea at any lunch table.

View item

A clear glass bottle with a narrow neck and wide body. It appears empty and has some etched or printed design on its surface, though the details aren't clearly visible. The bottle has a simple, cylindrical shape typical of water or juice bottles, with a slight lip at the top where a cap would typically be placed. The glass is transparent and clean.

Carafe

For All Leaf Teas

$39

Ippodo Tea - blending teas that deserve to be rebrewed

As a Japanese tea specialist established in Kyoto three centuries ago, we blend and produce each of our teas with experience and high standards of quality.

Since our tea leaves have endurance, you can rebrew them three times without sacrificing flavor. Between each brew, peek inside the pot—if it looks like the tea leaves have not fully opened up yet, you can even try brewing a fourth or fifth time.

View Sencha View Gyokuro View Gyokuro

View Hojicha & Genmaicha View Kyusu Teapots