I’m always on the lookout for new ways to experiment with culinary tea. I think I’ve hit upon a popcorn topper that is quite good. You have to like the taste of Matcha powder to appreciate this recipe, but for those of you who do, you’ll be surprised at how tasty this is. Matcha is the fine powder of Japanese green tea. The tea leaf is de-veined and de-stemmed. This leaf, known as Tencha is put in a Matcha grinder (see post, WTE Day 3) to create the bright green dust that is used in Chanoyu, the Japanese tea ceremony. The grade of Matcha used for this ritual is very expensive, but it is possible to find a “confection” grade Matcha at an Asian grocer. This is what I used. Most other ingredients you probably have in your kitchen and the procedure is really simple.
Recipe
- ¼ Cup of popcorn
- ½ teaspoon Matcha powder, confectioner’s grade
- ½ teaspoon Cumin powder
- ¼ to½ teaspoon soy sauce to taste
- 3 tablespoons melted butter
Melt the butter and whisk in the Matcha powder, cumin and soy sauce. Pop the corn and drizzle the mixture on the popcorn in layers. Eat while hot! The neat thing for me about this experiment was discovering how well Matcha and cumin work together. Often Matcha needs a sweetener or a traditional pairing with Asian spices, but cumin is not traditionally used where Japanese flavours are found. Finding that they blended perfectly was a revelation.
