擂茶

Today I tried something very new to me. The idea of it is totally foreign. In fact, I didn't know such a thing existed until late last year when my colleague told me so (and I call myself a Malaysian Chinese...)

The thing I had was called "擂茶" (lui cha) which apparently means pounded tea. I pronounce it as "lui cha" because that is how you pronounce it in Cantonese, however I don't know how it sounds like in its native Hakka.

I think there are 2 versions of it, at least. One of them is like a real tea. The ingredients of nuts, rice, soybeans and grains are all pounded together to make a powdered texture. Then, this is added in hot tea, usually green tea, since it's always green in colour.

The one I ate for dinner today, however, is slightly different. The ingredients are the same, except with the addition of french beans and a huge bunch of peppermint leaves and green vegetable leaves. The ingredients are not made into powder form, but rather left as it is. The leaves are sliced in thin strips and all the ingredients are mixed well (something like Bibimbap) before hot green tea is poured over. It is more of a soupy, rice dish than a beverage.

All I can say is that to appreciate this, you will have to have an acquired taste. It's not bad, it just tasted rather unusual to me. Too bad I don't have a photo to illustrate though, it does look kinda nice...