Green tea has met its Matcha
While most food fads and health trends sink to the bottom of your Instagram explore page within a couple of days, green tea has had a shelf-life that extends beyond the digital age – it’s been around for 50 centuries. Numerous studies provide evidence of green tea’s health benefits, particularly its anti-cancer, anti-diabetes, anti-bacterial and antiviral properties. [Main photo: @Matcha.SF via Instagram]
Matcha, however, has all of that and more. While it’s from the same plant, the process grinds up the entire leaf and stem without throwing out any of the good stuff out – as you normally would with a tea bag. The resulting powder can then be used as tea, in foods or in other beverages making it far more versatile.
While this isn’t news to anyone, a new study from Penn State University shows us why this is exactly. The study examined healthy and cancerous oral cells side-by-side, exposing them to various levels of EGCG (epigallocatechin gallate, the unique compound that gets a lot of attention for being an outright miracle-worker) found in matcha chewing gum. According to Joshua Lambert, a professor conducting the study, the EGCG may trigger a reactive oxygen species, destroying the mitochondria in oral cancer cells and causing them to die, while the opposite happens in healthy cells. So, your matcha obsession may just be adding years to your life.
So, now for the interesting part, how can you get your daily Matcha intake within The City?
1. Baked Cheese Tart, Bake Cheese Tart
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2. Rolled ice cream and berries, STEEP Creamery & Tea
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3. Shaved matcha ice and dessert, Matcha Cafe Maiko
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4. Matcha taiyaki topped with a crispy crepe and matcha poky, Uji Time
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5. Crispy egg waffle and Matcha ice cream with rose petals, Gadani
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7. Matcha Crepe Cake, U Dessert
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If this is giving you life, then you can follow this Instagram account dedicated to matcha everything in San Francisco.