Japanese Matcha Tea Bowls

Matcha is a traditional Japanese tea that has been consumed for hundreds of years. Traditionally, it is drunk out of matcha bowls, particularly during Japanese tea ceremonies. Here, you can find a collection of beautiful Japanese matcha bowls ranging from the rustic to the elegant, all authentic and 100% made in Japan

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Featured Matcha Tea Bowls

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FLOWER CRYSTAL (GREEN TEA) 2-PIECE BOWL SET | KYOTO-KIYOMIZU WARES

$108.00

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Learn About Japanese Matcha Tea Bowls

What is Matcha?

Matcha refers specifically to green tea powder made from tea leaves that are plucked and go through a process that includes drying until they are milled down into powder form. On the bitter side, matcha is high in antioxidants and was originally taken as a medicine in ancient Japan.In tea ceremony, matcha is generally enjoyed in one of two forms: “koicha,” which literally translates to “thick tea” and has a paste-like consistency, and “usucha,” which literally translates to “thin tea” and is the more commonly seen liquid version of matcha.

What is a Matcha Bowl Used For?

Matcha bowls are used both to mix the matcha and to drink it. They have been used in tea ceremonies for hundreds of years and are the preferred vessel for drinking matcha.

Do you need to use a specific bowl for matcha?
Nowadays matcha-flavored beverages are popular in all sorts of varieties. However, real matcha comes in a powder and must be whisked with a special bamboo brush called a "chasen." In order to be whisked with enough vigor, there needs to be room in the bowl for the whisk to move around. On the other hand, the bowl should be small enough to easily hold and drink from, so not any cup or bowl can be used.

Types of Matcha Bowls

Matcha bowls are typically ceramics, made from clay or porcelain. However, more modern iterations of tea ceremonies may introduce other materials as well. Traditionally, the most popular types of ceramics amongst tea practitioners are the following - Raku-Yaki, Hagi-Yaki, and Karatsu-Yaki (in that order).

Matcha bowls can cover a wide range of aesthetics, allowing them to complement the environment, weather, or users’ preferences.

Matcha bowls can cover a wide range of aesthetics, allowing them to complement the environment, weather, or users’ preferences.

・Rustic
These matcha bowls tend to have rougher textures, allowing the user to appreciate the raw natural beauty of the original materials. They tend to be thicker, retaining heat better and keeping one from scorching their hands on the bowl. These bowls are also fantastic examples of the “wabi-sabi” aesthetic - perfectly imperfect.

・Elegant
These matcha bowls are smoother and are often decorated with a glaze or painted designs. They tend to be thinner, lighter in weight, and gentle to the touch.

How to Choose a Matcha Bowl

There are several factors to consider when choosing a matcha bowl:

・Size
Try to find a bowl that can easily be held in one hand with your thumb on the rim and the rest of your fingers supporting it from the foot.
・Thickness
The thickness of the bowl is quite important as well, as thicker bowls help the tea retain heat better and are less hot to the touch, but they can also be on the heavier side as well as more difficult to drink from if the rim is too thick. On the other hand, thinner bowls are lighter and easier to wrap one’s mouth around, but they can also be hot to the touch as they transfer heat more easily.

・Shape
The shape of a matcha bowl can affect how easy or difficult it is to whisk the matcha. Bowls with a mid-size height and wider bottom are the easiest to whisk in, as the smaller the bottom the more difficult it is to get a good rhythm with the whisk and get the matcha powder that has settled. Meanwhile, lower-rise bowls can often be found being used for tea ceremonies during the summer, and although they are easy to whisk in, it is also easier for the matcha to spill over, so they require focus and sturdy hands.

How to Whisk Delicious Matcha

1. Pour some boiling water into the tea bowl and stir it lightly with the chasen (bamboo whisk). This will warm the bowl and soften the whisk to make it more pliable. This important step ensures that the water used to make tea in the next step stays hotter and that the whisk will be better able to conform to the shape of the bowl as you whisk.

2. Drain the water and then scoop 2 grams of matcha powder into the empty bowl. This amount can be increased or decreased to make a stronger or weaker tea based on your preference.

3. Pour in 70ml of 80°C water and begin by gently mixing the tea and water with the whisk. This step helps to remove any clumps of tea.

4. Whisk the tea quickly, making an M shape back and forth to ensure that all parts of the bowl are mixed in. As you whisk briskly, tiny bubbles should form on the top of the tea, much like the micofoam on a cafe latte.

5. Once the tea has been thoroughly mixed and there is a nice layer of foam covering the top, slow from whisking to a very gentle stir as you pull it upward so that only the foam on the top is being mixed. This will get rid of the larger bubbles while keeping the tiny ones in tact. Once the large bubbles have disappeared and the matcha has a beautiful, consistent foam on the top, you're finished!

Tips:
It is important to find a bowl that is not too rough or too smooth, as either make it difficult for whisks to glide through the tea or gain the right friction. Although the preparation varies depending on different schools’ styles of tea ceremony, whisking until there is a light foam on top of the matcha tends to cut the bitterness and bring a slight sweetness.

Matcha FAQ

Can you make matcha in any bowl?

As long as the bowl is large enough that the whisk can move freely, yes, you could make matcha in any bowl. However, you'd want the bowl to also be easy to drink out of and preferably, beautiful to look at. One of the steps in a traditional Japanese tea ceremony involves admiring the tea bowl itself, and enjoying tea from a beautiful vessel certainly adds to the experience of drinking matcha.
It's not surprising, then, that matcha lovers in Japan spend spend hundreds of dollars on a single tea bowl.

Do you drink matcha straight from the matcha bowl?

Yes, matcha is meant to be drunk directly from the bowl as soon as it is made, which is why choosing a good matcha bowl is important.

Can use spoon to stir matcha?

Trying to use a spoon instead of a proper "chasen" whisk to make matcha will result in lumpy tea that doesn't have any foam on it—not ideal, in other words. Investing in a real bamboo whisk is definitely worth it if you want to fully enjoy matcha.

Can I whisk matcha with fork?

Although a fork would certainly be better than a spoon, it will still be impossible to come anywhere near the quality of good matcha whisked with a bamboo "chasen" whisk.