Matcha clumping

Why it happens

Nothing in matcha goes into solution. The powder is suspended in the water, and a suspension has to be created mechanically rather than allowed to happen.

The particles are extremely fine and slightly oily, so when water hits a small heap of them the outside wets first and forms a skin. That skin seals the dry powder inside, and no amount of further whisking will open it — you are stirring a sealed parcel around a bowl.

Matcha also compacts in the tin. The lumps that come out of the container are already dense before any water reaches them, which is why the problem starts before the kettle does.

Rescuing a lumpy bowl

In order of how much of the drink you keep.

• Push it through a fine sieve into another cup. Fast, effective, and you lose the foam.
• Press the lumps against the side of the bowl with the back of a spoon and re-whisk. Works for a few large lumps.
• Use a milk frother or a stick blender. They will break lumps a bamboo whisk cannot, at the cost of a coarser foam.
• Start again if it is very lumpy. A bowl of matcha costs a teaspoon of powder and thirty seconds.

The contributing factors

Not sieving

The single largest cause. Matcha compacts in storage and arrives in the bowl already lumped.

All the liquid at once

The second largest. Volume arriving before the powder is wet is what seals the lumps.

Damp matcha

Humidity turns matcha into a solid cake. Keep the tin sealed and never put a wet spoon in it.

Cold liquid

Cold milk or water wets the powder more slowly, so it clumps more. Paste it with a little warm water first.

Old matcha

Stale matcha clumps more and tastes worse. If it has gone khaki and smells of hay, that is the real problem.

A round-bottomed bowl helps

A tall mug gives the whisk nowhere to work. A wide bowl is the traditional shape for a reason.

The method that avoids it

1. Sift the matcha through a fine tea strainer straight into the bowl. This is the step that matters most and the one people skip — matcha is a fine powder that compacts in the tin and does not disperse on contact with liquid.
2. Add a small splash of water first — not the full amount — and work it into a smooth paste against the side of the bowl.
3. Use water well off the boil. Boiling water makes matcha taste harsh and bitter as well as encouraging it to seize.
4. Add the rest of the liquid and whisk briskly in a W or zigzag motion rather than a circle. A circular stir pushes powder to the edges.
5. A bamboo whisk is genuinely better than a spoon or a fork, because its many fine tines break clumps rather than pushing them around. A small electric milk frother is a good substitute.
6. For a latte, make the paste first and add the milk afterwards. Powder tipped straight into milk will clump every time.

Common questions