Hojicha vs Matcha: What Hojicha Is, How It’s Roasted and How Cafés Use It

Japanese tea guides

What is hojicha?

Hojicha means “roasted tea”. It starts as ordinary Japanese green tea, steamed like sencha, and is then roasted over high heat until the green turns amber and then a deep reddish brown. The heat drives off the fresh, vegetal aromas of green tea and builds new ones: toasted grain, roasted nuts, a little caramel and a smoky edge.

Hojicha is traditionally made from leaf and stems together. Stems roast particularly well, giving sweetness and body, so they are part of every hojicha we supply. Some hojicha starts from bancha, the larger leaf of later harvests; some starts from tencha, the shaded leaf grown for matcha, and its stems. The starting leaf, the roast and the grind all change the cup.

How the roast changes the tea

Roasting is the one step that separates hojicha from every other Japanese green tea. A light roast keeps a little of the tea’s green sweetness under the toastiness; a deep roast goes further, into dark caramel and cocoa-like notes that hold their own against syrups and sweeteners. Because the roast does so much of the work, hojicha is forgiving: it takes hotter water than matcha, it rarely turns harsh, and it pairs easily with milk.

Hojicha powder is the roasted tea milled fine. It is drunk whole, like matcha, which is what makes it so useful in a café: it whisks or blends straight into milk for a hojicha latte, and it bakes into cakes, ice cream and custards.

Hojicha vs matcha at a glance

Hojicha vs matcha: caffeine

Hojicha is usually described as the gentler of the two, and for good reason. It is made from more mature leaf and stems, which carry less caffeine than the young, shaded leaf used for matcha; shading itself raises the caffeine in matcha leaf³.

• Brewed hojicha comes out at about 20 mg of caffeine per 100 ml in Japan’s official food-composition tables, the same as brewed sencha¹.
• Matcha has 19–44 mg per gram², all of which you drink, so a 2 g bowl or latte carries roughly 38–88 mg. See how much caffeine is in matcha.
• Hojicha powder is drunk whole, so a hojicha latte delivers more than a brewed cup of hojicha. There is no published per-gram figure for the grades we supply, so we don’t give one; what can be said is that it starts from lower-caffeine leaf than matcha.

That is why many cafés list hojicha as their afternoon and evening option: it gives customers a warm, tea-forward latte without the full lift of a matcha latte.

This article is for general information and isn’t medical advice. If you’re pregnant, sensitive to caffeine or taking medication, talk to your doctor about what’s right for you.

How cafés use hojicha powder

On a café menu, hojicha sits next to matcha and fills the gaps matcha leaves. It appeals to customers who find matcha too grassy, it works late in the day, and its color makes it easy to tell apart on the bar. The common uses:

• Hojicha latte, hot or iced. The anchor drink. A deep roast stands up to oat milk and to sweeteners; a lighter roast suits customers who drink it unsweetened. Our hojicha latte guide for cafés gives ratios per cup and a batching method.
• Seasonal specials. Hojicha’s toasty, caramel profile is a natural fit for autumn and winter menus, and it pairs especially well with Okinawan brown sugar syrup.
• Desserts and baking. Hojicha powder flavors soft-serve, panna cotta, cheesecake and cookies without turning them green.
• Brewed hojicha. Loose-leaf hojicha by the pot, or cold-brewed for iced tea.

Hojicha or matcha: which should you choose?

• Choose matcha for a bright, creamy, umami-rich cup, for the traditional whisked bowl, and for the lift its caffeine gives. Our matcha buying guide explains the grades.
• Choose hojicha for a toasty, comforting cup, a later-in-the-day drink, or a latte for people who don’t love grassy flavors.
• On a café menu, offer both. They cover different moods and different times of day, and they share the same milk, cups and workflow.

Hojicha vs matcha: common questions

What is hojicha made from?

Japanese green tea leaf and stems, roasted until they turn reddish brown. Depending on the tea, the starting leaf can be bancha or tencha, the shaded leaf grown for matcha.

Does hojicha have less caffeine than matcha?

Generally, yes. It is made from more mature leaf and stems, which carry less caffeine than the young shaded leaf used for matcha. Brewed hojicha has about 20 mg per 100 ml in Japan’s food-composition tables; a 2 g serving of matcha has roughly 38–88 mg.

Is hojicha the same as matcha?

No. Both are Japanese green teas, but matcha is shaded leaf milled into a green powder, and hojicha is roasted leaf and stems, brewed as loose leaf or milled into a brown powder.

What does hojicha taste like?

Toasty and nutty, with caramel and a gentle smoky edge. It is softer and rounder than matcha and has very little of green tea’s grassy character.

Can I make a latte with hojicha powder?

Yes. Whisk the powder with a little hot water to a smooth paste, then add steamed or cold milk. Our hojicha latte guide has ratios for hot and iced drinks.

References

1. Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT), Japan. Standard Tables of Food Composition in Japan – 2020 (Eighth Revised Edition). Beverages: tea — hojicha, infusion: caffeine 0.02 g per 100 g; sencha, infusion: caffeine 0.02 g per 100 g.
2. Koláčková T, Kolofiková K, Sytařová I, Snopek L, Sumczynski D, Orsavová J. Matcha tea: analysis of nutritional composition, phenolics and antioxidant activity. Plant Foods for Human Nutrition. 2020;75(1):48–53.
3. Ku KM, Choi JN, Kim J, Kim JK, Yoo LG, Lee SJ, Hong YS, Lee CH. Metabolomics analysis reveals the compositional differences of shade grown tea (Camellia sinensis L.). Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry. 2010;58(1):418–426.