''Kukicha'' ( 茎茶), or twig tea, also known as ''bōcha'' (棒茶), is a Japanese tea blend made of

stem Stem or STEM most commonly refers to: * Plant stem, a structural axis of a vascular plant * Stem group * Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics Stem or STEM can also refer to: Language and writing * Word stem, part of a word respon ...

s, stalks, and

twig A twig is a thin, often short, branch of a tree or Bush (plant), bush. The buds on the twig are an important diagnostic characteristic, as are the abscission scars where the leaves have fallen away. The color, texture, and patterning of the t ...

s of the tea plant. It is available as a

green tea Green tea is a type of tea made from the leaves and buds of the '' Camellia sinensis'' that have not undergone the withering and oxidation process that creates oolong teas and black teas. Green tea originated in China in the late 1st millenn ...

or in more oxidised processing. Kukicha has a unique flavour and aroma among teas, due to it being composed of parts of the plant that are excluded from most other teas. Regular kukicha material comes from production of ''

sencha is a type of Japanese green tea (, ) which is prepared by infusing the processed whole tea leaves in hot water. This is as opposed to matcha (), powdered Japanese green tea, where the green tea powder is mixed with hot water and therefore the ...

'' or ''

matcha is a finely ground powder of green tea specially processed from shade-grown tea leaves. Shade growing gives matcha its characteristic bright green color and strong umami flavor. Matcha is typically consumed suspended in hot water. Matcha ori ...

''. When coming from ''

gyokuro is a type of green tea from Japan. It differs from the standard ''sencha'' (a classic green tea grown in the sun) in being grown under the shade rather than the full sun. The name "gyokuro" translates as "jewel dew" (or "jade dew"). According to ...

's'' production, it takes the name ' (雁ヶ音 / かりがね) or ' (白折 / しらおれ). Karigane has historically been the name of kukicha made from leaves used for gyokuro green tea. However, these days the term karigane has become diverse, and is also used for any kukicha of high quality. Karigane that is specifically from Kyushu is called ''shiraore''. Kukicha has a mildly nutty and slightly creamy sweet flavour. It is made of four sorts of stems, stalks, and twigs of ''

Camellia sinensis ''Camellia sinensis'' is a species of evergreen shrub or small tree in the flowering plant family Theaceae. Its leaves, leaf buds, and stems can be used to produce tea. Common names include tea plant, tea shrub, and tea tree (unrelated to ''Me ...

''. For best results, kukicha is steeped in water between . Green varieties are best steeped for less than one minute. Oversteeping or steeping too hot, as with all green teas, results in a bitter, unsavoury brew. It is common to steep kukicha for three or four infusions. Kukicha is one of the preferred teas of the

macrobiotic diet A macrobiotic diet (or macrobiotics) is an unconventional restrictive diet based on ideas about types of food drawn from Zen Buddhism. The diet tries to balance the supposed yin and yang elements of food and cookware. Major principles of macrobi ...

References

Japanese green tea Japanese cuisine terms {{tea-stub