Buckwheat tea, known as ''memil-cha'' () in
Korea
Korea is a peninsular region in East Asia consisting of the Korean Peninsula, Jeju Island, and smaller islands. Since the end of World War II in 1945, it has been politically Division of Korea, divided at or near the 38th parallel north, 3 ...
, ''soba-cha'' () in
Japan
Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
, and ''kuqiao-cha'' ( zh, s=苦荞茶, t=苦蕎茶, labels=no) in
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
, is a tea made from roasted
buckwheat
Buckwheat (''Fagopyrum esculentum'') or common buckwheat is a flowering plant in the knotweed family Polygonaceae cultivated for its grain-like seeds and as a cover crop. Buckwheat originated around the 6th millennium BCE in the region of what ...
.
Like other
traditional Korean tea
Korean tea is a beverage consisting of boiled water infused with leaf, leaves (such as the tea plant ''Camellia sinensis''), roots, flowers, fruits, grains, edible mushrooms, or edible seaweed, seaweed. It may or may not contain tea leaves.
Hi ...
s, ''memil-cha'' can be drunk either warm or cold and is sometimes served in place of water.
Recently,
tartari buckwheat grown in
Gangwon Province is popular for making ''memil-cha'', as it is nuttier and contains more
rutin
Rutin (rutoside, quercetin-3-O-rutinoside or sophorin) is the glycoside combining the flavonol quercetin and the disaccharide rutinose (α-L-rhamnopyranosyl-(1→6)-β-D-glucopyranose). It is a flavonoid glycoside found in a wide variety of pla ...
.
Preparation
Buckwheat is husked, cooked, and dried then pan-fried without oil.
For one part of buckwheat, ten parts of water are used.
of roasted buckwheat is added to water and infused for 2–4 minutes.
See also
* ''
Bori-cha
Barley tea is a roasted-grain-based infusion made from barley. It is a staple across many East Asian countries such as China, Japan, and Korea. It has a toasty, bitter flavor.
In Korea, the tea is consumed either hot or cold, often taking the ...
'' – barley tea
* ''
Hyeonmi-cha
Brown rice tea, called ''hyeonmi-cha'' ( , lit. "brown rice tea") in Korean and (lit. "brown rice water"), (lit. "roasted brown rice water"), or (lit "roasted rice water") in Vietnamese, is an infusion made from roasted brown rice.
Preparat ...
'' – brown rice tea
* ''
Oksusu-cha
''Oksusu-cha'' () or corn tea is a Korean tea made from corn. While ''oksusu-suyeom-cha'' () or corn silk tea refers to the tea made from corn silk, ''oksusu-cha'' can be made from corn kernels, corn silk, or a combination of both. The caffeine-f ...
'' – corn tea
*
Roasted grain beverage
A cereal coffee (also known as grain coffee, roasted grain drink or roasted grain beverage) is a hot drink made from one or more cereal grains roasted and commercially processed into crystal or powder form to be reconstituted later in hot water ...
*
List of buckwheat dishes
This is a list of buckwheat dishes, consisting of dishes that use buckwheat as a main ingredient. Buckwheat is a plant cultivated for its pseudocereal, grain-like seeds and as a cover crop. A related and more bitter species, ''Fagopyrum tataricum' ...
References
Herbal teas
Korean tea
Buckwheat dishes
{{Korea-cuisine-stub