A hohin is a traditional Japanese teapot used for brewing high-quality green teas like sencha and gyokuro.
Here's a step-by-step guide on how to use a hohin:
- Gather your materials: Apart from the hohin itself, you'll need loose-leaf green tea, a tea cup or several tea cups if you're serving multiple people, a tea tray or a clean surface to catch any spills, and hot water.
- Preheat the hohin: Pour hot water into the hohin to warm it up. Let the water sit for a minute or two, then pour the hot water out. This step helps to maintain the optimal brewing temperature for the tea.
- Measure the tea: Use a teaspoon or a dedicated tea scoop to measure the appropriate amount of tea for your desired strength. The amount can vary depending on the personal preference and the type of tea, but a general guideline is 1 to 2 teaspoons per cup. Be mindful not to overfill the teapot, allowing the leaves to unfurl.
- Pour hot water: Heat the water to the appropriate temperature for the green tea you’re drinking. The water temperature can vary depending on the type of green tea (e.g., around 160-175°F or 70-80°C for sencha). Slowly pour the hot water into the hohin, covering the tea leaves completely.
- Steep the tea: Place the lid on the hohin to retain heat and steep the tea. The recommended steeping time will vary based on the tea type, but a starting point is 1 to 2 minutes for high quality sencha.
- Pour the tea: After the desired steeping time, hold the lid of the hohin with one finger and prevent it from falling off, and slowly pour the tea into the tea cup(s). It’s common to pour a small amount of tea into each cup in multiple rounds, ensuring an even distribution of flavors.
- Enjoy your tea: Sip and savor the flavors of your freshly brewed tea. If you have more water remaining in the hohin, you can repeat the steeping process for more infusions, gradually increasing the steeping time.
Using a hohin requires a bit of practice to get the proportions, steeping times and water temperatures right for your preferred taste. Adjust to your liking and enjoy the journey of discovering the nuances of different green teas.
This step-by-step guide can look daunting, but all you're really doing is heating the pot, adding tea and letting it steep. Enjoy!