Home-Grown Fresh Green Tea: How to Process Freshly Picked Green Tea Leaves In a Microwave

Gather the new yellow-green leaves (3 leaf shoots).

I gathered up one big sieve worth.

This amount of leaves is processed in 3 batches.

Start processing the leaves as soon as they are picked.

It's best not to wash them, but it bothers me not to so I rinse them quickly in water.

Drain the water off well.

Put the leaves on a heatproof dish and microwave for about 2 minutes.

This steams the leaves.

The steamed leaves are hot.

Taking care not to burn yourself, rub the leaves vigorously.

It may be best to rub them on a cutting board...

Squeeze out the moisture in the leaves as you rub them for 2 to 3 minutes.

Put the leaves back in the microwave, and microwave for 1 minute this time.

From this point on we'll be drying the leaves.

Repeat Steps 5 and size - rub the leave, then dry them out - 5 to 6 times.

The fragrance of the new tea leaves will fill the room.

The leaves will gradually lose moisture and become crispy.

When there's no moisture left in the leaves they're done.

These are the finished leaves!

If some just won't dry out enough in the micorowave, dry them in a frying pan slowly over low heat.

Let's try brewing some.

The color was quite light this time, but the flavor was strong.

Cold iced green tea is delicious too.