Hojicha Latte: Roasted Flavor Without Steeping

Want a warm latte with roasted flavor without waiting for leaves to steep? With about 1 tsp (2 g) powdered hojicha, about 1 1/3 fl oz (40 ml) water, and about 1/2 cup (130 ml) milk, this cup takes 9 minutes. Hojicha, roasted Japanese green tea, gives it a note distinct from other Japanese tea drinks made with genmaicha.

• Preparation 5 minutes
• Heating 4 minutes for the milk
• Total time 9 minutes
• Makes 1 serving, a cup of about 5 3/4 fl oz (170 ml)
• Tools a fine sieve, a small bowl, a spoon, a small saucepan, a kettle, a kitchen thermometer, and a cup

First make a smooth paste with powder and water. Milk blends into it more readily, without a deposit on top; you don't need foam for this to be a latte. Kura-ge sells Hojicha Terre as a powder. Roasted leaves would need to be steeped separately.

Hot hojicha latte ingredients

• About 1 tsp (2 g) powdered hojicha
• About 1 1/3 fl oz (40 ml) water at about 185°F (85°C)
• About 1/2 cup (130 ml) whole milk

How to make a hojicha latte

1. Sift about 1 tsp (2 g) powdered hojicha into a small bowl.
2. Pour about 1 1/3 fl oz (40 ml) water at about 185°F (85°C) over the powder.
3. Work the powder with a spoon to make a fluid, even paste.
4. Heat about 1/2 cup (130 ml) milk in a small saucepan for about 4 minutes, to 140°F (60°C).
5. Pour the hojicha paste into a cup.
6. Add about 2.2 fl oz (65 ml) from the about 1/2 cup (130 ml) warm milk.
7. Stir the paste into this first portion of milk.
8. Pour in the remaining about 2.2 fl oz (65 ml) warm milk.
9. Stir gently before drinking.

Keep the milk around 140°F (60°C) instead of boiling it. The cup stays warm without the milk covering the roasted flavor. Another turn of the spoon is enough if powder settles at the bottom.

Caramel, spice, or peanut: three variations

For caramel, add about 1 1/2 tsp (10 g) syrup to the warm milk before combining. For a gingerbread note, mix about 1/2 tsp (1 g) gingerbread spice into the milk. Taste in either case before sweetening more.

The peanut butter version makes the cup thicker: mix about 2 tsp (10 g) peanut butter with 4 tsp (20 ml) taken from the about 1/2 cup (130 ml) warm milk, then pour it back into the remaining about 3 3/4 fl oz (110 ml). It also adds peanuts.

Which hojicha should you use for a latte?

For this warm cup made without steeping leaves, we choose Hojicha Terre powder: it mixes with a spoon and stays in the milk. If you want to remove leaves after steeping, this method doesn't fit your tea.

Which Japanese tea drink should you make next?

Our tip. Pour the warm milk over the hojicha paste in two stages. The first loosens it; stir before adding the rest.

Allergens. The base recipe contains milk; the peanut butter version contains peanuts.