The perfect matcha latte at home
A café matcha latte is usually a lot of syrup hiding a bitter culinary powder. With first-harvest ceremonial matcha you can skip the syrup: the leaf is sweet enough on its own, and the color shows through the milk.
What you need
- 1 teaspoon (about 2 g) Matcha Organics ceremonial matcha
- 2 oz (60 ml) hot water, about 175°F / 80°C, just off the boil
- 6 to 8 oz (180 to 240 ml) milk of your choice; whole milk or oat milk froth best
- Optional: ½ teaspoon honey or maple syrup
Method
- Sift. Push the matcha through a small sieve into your cup or bowl. Thirty seconds, no clumps.
- Whisk. Add the hot water and whisk in a loose W shape with a bamboo whisk, or use a handheld milk frother, until the surface is smooth and lightly foamy. This is your matcha shot.
- Steam or froth the milk. Heat the milk to about 150°F / 65°C, then froth it. On the stove, warm it in a small pan and froth with the handheld frother for 20 seconds.
- Pour. Pour the milk into the matcha, holding back the foam with a spoon, then spoon the foam on top. Sweeten if you like.
Three tips
Never use boiling water. It scorches the leaf and makes any matcha bitter. Let the kettle sit for a minute or two first.
Whisk the matcha before the milk goes in. A smooth shot mixes into milk evenly; dry powder stirred into milk clumps.
Taste it unsweetened first. Ceremonial matcha has natural sweetness and umami. Most people find they need far less sugar than they expected, or none.
