What *is* Matcha and why is it so popular? And other trends you just don't get?

[SeptemberOctober25]

The only one I've ever had honestly tasted like a odd mix of grass and soya sauce. I'll admit I've only tried it once and it was from a free pret promotion in Leeds but it was absolutely foul and thrown away after a couple of sips. Maybe basing my opinion on this is wrong but I just can't get myself to try it again.
Matcha seems everywhere at the moment and my teenage nieces love it.
I know each to their own and everybody has different tastes but I'd be interested to know why it's so popular?
I follow a dance YouTuber who seems to have about four a day and includes matcha powder in everything.
What other 'trends' confuses people?

Oh thank goodness for threads like this.

Hot honey: is it spicy hot or temperature hot and either way WHY?

Bubble tea. Looks absolutely vile.

Oh. My. Word.

I've found my people.
Matcha, bubble tea, hot honey, avocado, Dubai chocolate!
Can I add in marshmallow fluff?

I don’t think I’ve had it don’t properly. Or maybe it is just horrid ?!

@nightSweatsNinja ''Emperor's new clothes.''

Matcha has been used in Japan since the 16th century...so it is rather daft to describe it as ''emperor's new clothes''.

Perfectly fine if it is not to your taste, but other cultures enjoy it.

Agree about matcha and barrel leg jeans! I’ve never seen them look good on anyone. In fact despite all the shops being full of them I’ve hardly seen them in real life.

Agree with pp. Avocado awful. I'm vindicated by how terrible avocado farming is to the environment.

Bubble tea, what is the point? The idea of chewing your drink is bizarre and surely the risk of choking is an issue??

I'll add smoked salmon to the list. It makes me feel ill it's so rich and I like sashimi!

Biscoff is another recent fad that I can't get behind, biscoff fecking everywhere. Tastes like burnt ginger to me yuk.

Personally love salted caramel though!

I've made ginger infused honey and chili honey.
The ginger is delicious. The chilli not so much.

Matcha is nice - in Japan.

Just like you can’t expect a decent builders brew in Greece, some things should be regional.

Temperature hot.

It's not. Had it in Japan in various places. Even a hint of matcha in any dish ruins it.

Mat - ground
Cha - tea

It’s a very ancient traditional drink

It maybe a fad on the internet, but certainly isn’t within Japan.

can’t handle coffee 😂

You seem to be missing the fact that it was actually you who made the point that it’s appropriate to call others unsophisticated babies for liking different things to you. It’s going by your attitude that I, as a wine drinker, should be able to deride you for not liking wine and not, as you seem to be advocating for, drinking it despite your own dislike.

I’d actually argue that most things that younger people dislike and are enjoyed by older people are things that objectively have overpowering and/or unpleasant tastes, and that people naturally lose the ability to taste as they age. In fact, there is a not insignificant portion of the population who are known to taste things more intensely than others, leading to them noticing bitter or otherwise unpleasant flavours in items that many others enjoy. Why would anyone make fun of anyone else for not wanting to develop a tolerance for tastes they find unpleasant? It’s healthy and admirable to constantly challenge yourself to leave your comfort zone in respect of literature, film, activities, travel, because you may discover you actually enjoy something you had previously discounted. What is he benefit to repeatedly exposing yourself to something you don’t like so that you can drink the same drink as others?

We are immensely privileged in the developed world to have the security to ensure we derive enjoyment from our food and drink almost as a rule. If you want to waste your time acquiring tastes (ie, reducing your disgust response to) for things you don’t actually like, then please feel free to spend your time doing that. I won’t be, and I don’t care what anyone else thinks about it, which I like to think is a slightly more “adult” response than being peer pressured into…drinking coffee? Sad.

Not really. It's very ceremonial and traditional in Japan, used for hundreds of years and is heavily ritualistic. It is ground green tea leaves, harvested in a specific way. It's has one of the highest concentration of antioxidants too, but agree the taste isn't everyone's favourite 😅

It’s honey infused with chilli and it is pretty tasty!

Can I take all these and add in Prosecco? Nasty cheap fizzy stuff. I just don’t get it.

There’s a really good podcast on The Food Programme about it, I learnt a lot!
https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/the-food-programme/id342927791?i=1000727408198

I had in Uji. It’s delicious.

The only thing ruining matcha is people who don’t like matcha insisting on drinking it because instagram’s algorithm tells them to, and then complaining.

My niece bought be one when we were out recently. It's not unpleasant but was a bit unremarkable

I do however like green tea (normal) so maybe i should buy some matcha teabags and try it that way?

Is everyone's obsession with pistachios local or has it reached the UK?
I love pistachios. I have having it shoved in sweets, ice cream, etc.

Funnily enough I did like bubble tea when I had it, even though I have ARFID. I found the texture rather pleasant to pop. Too bad I didn't have the foresight to realize the orange juice making up part of the drink was boxed rather than the freshly squeezed stuff.

I love matcha desserts. Ice cream, Mille crepes, mochi, biscuits etc are lovely with a strong matcha flavour.
I don’t order it that often as a drink, even though I do like it. Matcha from coffee shops is generally pretty disappointing and in a speciality place I’ll usually go for hojicha or genmaicha as my first preference drink. A good hojicha is wonderful. It’s toasty and almost savoury in flavour.

I agree with you on the chamomile tea - ghastly stuff!

I don't think I'd mind it so much if it tasted like grass. The times I've tried it, it tasted essentially like powdered hay mixed with dust.

I really like matcha. I have tried a vanilla flavour ceremonial grade one from Holland and Barret.
But I like eating rocket, l spinach and watercress on its own so I maybe have slightly weird taste!
I don't like bubble tea though.

I love camomile tea, I don’t think that one is a fad.