How to Whisk Matcha at Home: A Kyoto Chef's Guide
Matcha is not difficult. It is just unforgiving of a few small things —
water that is too hot, a bowl that was not dried, a whisk pressed hard
into the bottom. Get those right and you will make a bowl at home that
tastes like the one you drank in Kyoto.
I am a chef in Arashiyama, and my wife and I teach matcha to guests
who have often never held a chasen before.
This is the same method we teach in our kitchen, written down so you can keep it.
What You Need
Matcha. Use ceremonial grade, not culinary grade. Culinary grade is
made to survive sugar and milk in a latte; drunk on its own it tastes
flat and bitter. Look for a vivid green — dull or yellowish powder is
old or low grade.
A chasen (bamboo whisk). This is the one tool worth buying.
Around a hundred fine bamboo tines aerate the tea in a way a metal whisk
cannot.
A chawan (tea bowl).
Any wide, deep bowl works. It needs room for the whisk to move —
a narrow mug does not.
A dry cloth.
Not optional.
The bowl must be completely dry before the matcha goes in, and this is the
step people skip.
Part 1: Preparation
1. Cool the water to about 80°C (175°F).
Water straight from a boiling kettle scalds matcha and makes it bitter.
Pour the hot water into a mug or measuring cup first and let it settle.
You will know it is ready when the steam calms down and the cup is comfortable to hold.
2. Warm the bowl and soften the whisk.
Pour a little hot water into the chawan, dip the tips of the chasen in, and swish them gently.
This warms the bowl so the tea does not cool too quickly, and it softens the delicate bamboo tines so they do not snap.
A new whisk used dry is a whisk you will soon replace.
3. Wipe the bowl completely dry.
Discard the water and dry the inside of the bowl thoroughly with a clean cloth or paper towel. Even a single drop left behind will make the matcha powder clump — and clumps do not dissolve later.
Part 2: Whisking
4. Add the matcha and the water.
Put about 【2 chashaku scoops (about 2 g)】 of matcha into the dry bowl, then pour in
about 60–70 ml (2–2.5 oz) of your cooled water. The water should just
pool in the bottom of the bowl. Too much water and a good foam becomes
very hard to achieve.
5. Blend gently first.
Rest the whisk lightly on the bottom of the bowl and stir slowly in
small circles, just enough to bring the powder and water together.
This first step is quiet and unhurried. Skipping straight to fast
whisking leaves dry powder stranded at the edges.
6. Now whisk briskly, from the wrist.
Lift the whisk just off the bottom — one or two millimetres — and move
it quickly back and forth in an M or W shape for about fifteen
seconds. Keep your arm still; the motion comes from a light flick of
the wrist. Do not press the whisk down into the bowl. You will hear
the sound change as the foam builds.
7. Smooth the foam.
Once a thick froth has formed, raise the whisk until it is just
brushing the surface and glide it gently across the top. This breaks
the large bubbles and leaves a fine, creamy layer.
8. Lift the whisk from the centre.
Draw one slow circle in the middle of the bowl — the shape of the
letter O — then lift the whisk straight up from the centre. It leaves
a soft peak of foam in the middle. That peak is how you know you did
it right.
How to Drink It
The whisking is only half of it. In Japan, how you receive the bowl
matters as much as how you made it — and none of this is complicated.
Before you drink, give a small bow. It is a quiet way of saying thank
you, whether to your host or simply to the moment.
Pick up the bowl with your right hand and rest it on the palm of your
left, steadying the side with your right. The bowl has a front — often
the most beautiful part of the design — and out of respect for the
person who made it, we do not drink from that side. Turn the bowl
clockwise twice so the front faces away from you.
Then drink, unhurried, finishing in three or four sips. On the last
sip, it is polite to make a small slurping sound. Far from rude, it
tells your host: it was delicious, and I finished every drop.
Afterwards, wipe the rim where your lips touched with your right thumb
and forefinger, and turn the bowl counter-clockwise twice so the front
faces you again. Take a moment to look at it properly — the glaze, the
weight, the marks of the maker's hands — then set it down gently with
your right hand.
That pause at the end is not ceremony for its own sake. It is simply
the last part of the drink.
Four Mistakes to Avoid
Boiling water. The most common one, and the reason many people decide
they dislike matcha. Let it cool to around 80°C.
A bowl that is not dry. Water left in the bowl makes the powder clump
before you have even started, and those clumps stay to the end.
Too much water. It looks generous, but foam needs the water to pool
shallow. Start at 60–70 ml.
Pressing the whisk into the bottom. It breaks the tines and produces
no foam. Hover one or two millimetres above the base and let the wrist
do the work.
Looking After the Whisk and the Tea
Never leave the chasen sitting in the bowl. Rinse it in warm water —
never soap — shake out the water, and stand it upright to dry. If you
have a kusenaoki, the ceramic stand shaped like the whisk, use it; it
holds the tines in shape as they dry.
Matcha itself fades fast. Air, light, heat and moisture all dull it.
Keep it sealed and out of the light, and finish an opened tin within
about a month for the best flavour. If you store it in the fridge,
bring the tin fully to room temperature before opening it — otherwise
moisture condenses inside and the powder clumps for good. And keep it
away from coffee and spices. Matcha absorbs smells with remarkable
speed.
FAQ
Q: How much matcha and water for one bowl?
A: About 【2 chashaku scoops (about 2 g)】 of matcha to 60–70 ml (2–2.5 oz) of water. The
water should pool shallow in the bottom of the bowl — too much makes
foam difficult.
Q: What water temperature is best for matcha?
A: Around 80°C (175°F). Water straight from the kettle scalds the tea
and makes it harshly bitter. Pour it into a separate cup first and
wait until the steam settles.
Q: Why is my matcha clumpy?
A: Almost always a damp bowl. Dry the inside completely before adding
the powder — even one drop of water will clump it, and clumps do not
dissolve afterwards.
Q: Circles or a W motion — which is right?
A: Both, in order. Blend gently in small circles first to bring the
powder and water together, then lift the whisk slightly and move it
briskly in an M or W shape to build the foam.
Q: Can I make matcha without a bamboo whisk?
A: Yes. An electric milk frother works well, and shaking matcha with
warm water in a sealed jar also works. Neither gives the same fine
foam as a chasen.
Q: Is it really polite to slurp the last sip?
A: Yes. A small slurp on the final sip tells your host that the tea
was good and that you finished all of it.
Learning It With Your Hands
Reading how to whisk matcha and feeling it are different things. The
moment the sound changes under the whisk, the weight of a warm bowl in
both hands — those do not come off a page.
In our home in Arashiyama we teach this beside guests who have never
held a chasen, using Uji matcha from Ryuoen and a bowl they choose
themselves from twelve. Everyone goes home with a printed guide, too,
so the method travels with them.
If you are coming to Kyoto, you are welcome to learn it with us. And
if you are not, we hope this guide gets you a good bowl wherever you
are.