Fingered citron & jasmine spring green tea
New-season green tea with fingered citron and jasmine — wonderfully fragrant, and just the cup for a low, sluggish afternoon.
- 13 min
- Serves 2
- Steep
- Easy
Why it suits you: Qi Stagnation brings low moods, frequent sighing and a tight, bloated feeling in the chest and ribs, and Grain Rain's endless drizzle makes it worse. It is also the season for new tea: fragrant fingered citron and jasmine soothe the liver and get qi moving, in a cup that refreshes and lifts the spirits.
Method
Prep 5 min · Cook 8 min- 1Rinse the fingered citron slices, put them in a teapot, pour over 500 ml of boiling water, cover and steep for 5 minutes.
- 2By then the water will have cooled to about 85°C. Add the jasmine and green tea and steep for 2–3 minutes more.
- 3Strain off the tea leaves and jasmine, stir in the honey once it is warm rather than hot, and drink warm or pour into a flask.
Cautions
- If you are sensitive to caffeine or sleep badly, halve the green tea or leave it out and drink the citron and jasmine alone.
Chef's tips
- Strain the green tea after 2–3 minutes or it turns bitter. The citron slices can take a second steeping with fresh boiling water.
The TCM view
Fingered citron is pungent, bitter, sour and warm; it soothes the liver, moves qi, settles the stomach and resolves phlegm. Jasmine is pungent, sweet and warm, lifting constraint and harmonising digestion. Spring green tea is bitter, sweet and cool, clearing the head and easing irritability. The two warm, fragrant botanicals balance the coolness of the tea, so the cup is neutral overall, moving qi and resolving damp.
