Meet Your Matcha

by Joanna Farrow

Matcha teas and lattes have become a staple of every coffee shop and health food store. A beloved ingredient in Japan for generations, it is a powdered green tea that is rich in nutrients and antioxidants, and gives a slow-release caffeine boost through the day. Praised by everyone from Ella Woodward to the Hemsleys, one glass of matcha is the equivalent of 10 glasses of green tea in terms of nutritional value and antioxidant content. But there is so much more you can do with this miracle ingredient.
Packed with over 50 recipes for smoothies, soups, main meals and more, Meet Your Matcha will allow you to unlock the potential of this brilliant green ingredient. From a Matcha Sushi Salad and Matcha Chicken and Ginger Dumplings to Breakfast Smoothie Bowls or a Dark Chocolate and Matcha Layer Cake, these delicious dishes will let you make the most of your matcha.

Genres: Nonfiction, Cooking, Cookbooks

128 pages, Hardcover

Published September 19, 2017

About the author

Joanna Farrow trained as a home economist and has worked as a freelance writer for several food magazines including BBC Good Food Magazine. Joanna has written a diverse range of cookery books, from 30 Minute Vegetarian to Simply Cadbury s Chocolate and also styles food for book, magazine and advertising photography

Reviews

[Laurie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a wonderful little book that uses Matcha is some creative ways versus the simple drink. Each recipe is well thought out and in both metric and standard measurements making life very simple. The ingredients are straight forward and relatively easy to find in the local grocery store, which is a bonus. The photography is well done and adds a nice touch to each recipe. My only critique on this great little cook book is that there are not enough recipes for my liking. I would like to see more.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for my ARC for a fair and honest review.

[Jillyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Matcha is one of my favorite ingredients, though it is not something that is in my usual repertoire of handy dandy everyday ingredients. But, I was excited to give this cookbook ago because it has so many recipes. Overall, it delivered.

The book is divided into course types, including: smoothies and breakfast, main meals, sides and salads, desserts and cakes, sweet treats, and teas, juices, and cocktails. This makes it pretty easy to navigate.

I was happy that there were so many types of recipes. So many matcha books are either strictly tea, or they only include desserts. I appreciate that this one has main courses and salads and cocktails included in it. I wouldn't think to add matcha to a main dish, but here we are, and I'm definitely wanting to try it.

The steps are easy to follow. They're short, blunt, and to the point. They're also numbered. In my opinion, this makes it a great book for a beginner to get started in cooking with tea. The author gives a lot of suggestions for dairy free and meat free options, so if you have allergies, or are vegan/vegetarian, there's still items in this book that you can enjoy too.

Some of the ingredients could be a little vague, like "soft cheese", with no suggestions. I appreciate the rope you're giving me to explore, but even a personal recommendation tip would have been appreciated. It's also a bit hard to read all the ingredients because it's very busy. Listed it has cups, ounces, and grams all listed in one row. Also, there were times ingredients were listed twice with different verbiage, like caster/granulated sugar or groundnut/peanut. Counting on a conversion chart or a glossary list would have cleaned it up better.

With that out of the way, some of these recipes sound absolutely delicious. Some of the ones I'm most excited to try include Thai Prawn Cakes with Matchilli Sauce, Halloumi and Wild Rice Matcha-Spiked Pilaf, and Blueberry Matcheesecake.

I received a copy in exchange for my honest review.

[Ilana · Rating 5 out of 5]

This beautifully illustrated book with 50 'irresistible recipes' by food writer Joanna Farrow brings on your table a big variety of recipes, including savoury ones, which for me was a big novelty, as up to now I was only considering matcha for a sweet match.
The book is simply written, with easy directions and affordable recipes, both in terms of prices of the ingredients - except the matcha prices which are always high but you don't use more than 1-2 tbsp. for more recipes - suiting the beginner and middle-level chef.
The ingredients are also healthy, without using too much oil and sugar. The construction of the recipes use a feature outlined by the author, according to which the original matcha flavour can be enhanced based on the ingredients it is paired with. Therefore, it is possible, for instance, to suggest a recipe of matcha soft cheese and smoked salmon open sandwiches, or chicken noodles with matcha dumplings, or even matcha mayo.
This book is an interesting matcha journey which if you such a lover of this extraordinary ingredient, you would love to revisit over and over again.
Disclaimer: Book offered by the publisher in exchange for an honest review

[Peta Benjamin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a beautifully presented and photographed book. The recipes are easy to follow and the bonus is that the measurements are written in grams and ounces so no converting. There are also variations and tips included at the end of the recipes.

A great little blurb about the recipe is also included.

I was extremely happy to find this little gem of a book, especially as I have just returned from Japan and have been made aware of the wonderful health qualities of Matcha.

50 delicious recipes ranging from Smoothies & Breakfasts, Main Meals, Salads and Sides, Desserts & Cakes, Sweet Treats, Teas, Juices & Cocktails and a great Introduction explaining all about Matcha.

Thanks to Netgalley and the Publisher for the opportunity to read and give an honest voluntary review.

Lots of cooking from this book awaits the members of my household.

[Jossie Solheim · Rating 5 out of 5]

My husband looked at me rather strangely when he saw me oggling the lush recipes in this book, when I explained that it wasn't about dating but food, he was decidedly unconcerned lol. There is a lot to oggle in this book too, with beautiful pictures of some really tantalizing looking food scattered throughout (I can't stop thinking about the sticky dark chocolate cake with green frosting.

Not being a confident cook, I was pleased to see that the preparation instructions were kept fairly simple and to the point, including information at the very beginning of the book that explains about matcha itself, which never having used it before I was very pleased about. I will be starting with the tea as instructed and then move on to more complex recipes if I find I have a liking for it. I'm very excited though.

[Jenny Houle · Rating 5 out of 5]

I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley for an unbiased opinion.

As someone new to Matcha, but who has been interested in trying recipes, I was thrilled for the chance to review this cookbook. It offers a selection of recipes, from breakfast and smoothies, to main dishes, to desserts, and even to cocktails. In addition to step by step instructions, the author also offered substitutions in some of the recipes (specifically notes where regular milk can be used, versus where it should not be).

So far have only gotten to try a few recipes, but am thrilled with the results.

[Davianna · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was surprised to find that there are more used to matcha than drinks or pocky! This book is chock full of delicious matcha recipes including snacks, meals, & desserts. I would have liked to see more pictures as not all the recipes had pictures to accompany them but the converted measurements are a feature that I really like. All in all I recommend this book for anyone wanting to meet their matcha with this yummy cookbook.

[Claire · Rating 2 out of 5]

Joanna admits at the beginning of the book that she has used caution with the matcha which is why everything looks so pale. As a matcha lover, I would definitely be ramping up matchaness. The drinks were a concern.. 1 teaspoon of matcha to 1 to 2 tablespoons of sugar! I don't make cocktails so I don't know what the ratios are supposed to be but this seems excessive and feels like all you will taste is sugar not matcha.

[BluMoon Reads · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really wonderful recipe ideas, but only about 1/3 of the recipes have accompanying photos, and it's a huge pet peeve of mine when photos aren't included for each recipe so I can visualize what it will look like. Also this book could have been much, much longer, I feel like the author stopped short. Otherwise it's not bad at all!

[Matthew Royal · Rating 4 out of 5]

Technically, I shouldn't rate this book until I've made a sampling of the recipes inside, but I'm impressed with the concepts of non-dessert matcha recipes. Particularly interesting are the recipe for sole and the recipe for sushi rice salad.

[Mintti · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hyvä tietopaketti Matchasta. Tulin hankkineeksi sitä ja mielenkiinnolla kokeilen onko vaikutusta jaksamiseen ja oloon muutenkin. Noh, vaikken tuntisikaan vaikutuksia, niin kai se vaikuttaa silti, kun on niin ihmeainetta :D

[Annette McIntyre · Rating 3 out of 5]

A range of interesting recipes for using Matcha which proves it isn't just for drinking.

[GONZA · Rating 4 out of 5]

Everything you ever wanted to do with matcha, but you never dared to try...

Tutto quello che avreste voluto fare con il matcha, ma non avete mai osato provare....

[Bobby H · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was ok. Straight forward recipes which might work... Will try a couple. Not a lot of extraneous writing.

[Jessica · Rating 2 out of 5]

The author admits to not using enough matcha and that is a big problem.
The colours should be a beautiful mossy green not this pale mint shading.
Despite this, some good ideas.

[Gaby F. · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I saw the matcha cheesecake on the cover of this book, I immediately had to get the recipe. It reminded me of a heavenly tasting piece of cake I once had in a Japanese book store. What I loved about this cake, was the beautiful green color of the cake layers and the creamy filling in between, as well as the hint of green tea I could taste when I took a bite. Looking at the ingredients of the matcha cheesecake I expect a similar experience when I eat it and I cannot wait to make it. Going through this book, I am also drawn to the soft green color of the Matcha Vanilla Ice cream, the Dairy-Free Green Tea Popsicles, the Rhubarb Compote with Matcha Panna Cotta, and the White Choc Matcha Truffles. I believe that matcha goes well with sweet recipes where none of the other taste elements is overpowering the subtle taste of matcha. I also like the different beverages featured in this book. For personal taste reasons I do not care as much for the main meals, salads, and sides. Overall, I give this book four stars.

[Jesica DeHart · Rating 5 out of 5]

I discovered matcha with the matcha latte craze and yet had not learned how to use it as an ingredient in any other way. Meet Your Matcha is paving the way to bring this nutrient dense ingredient into our daily meals in innovative and mouth watering new ways.