Detailed Explanation of Mulberry Leaf Tea Production Techniques and Processing Steps

According to experts at the Japanese Institute of Health, mulberry leaves contain 17 amino acids, as well as fats, vitamin C, B1, B2, folic acid, carotene, calcium, phosphorus, iron, manganese, sodium, and more. These nutrients are at their highest levels in mulberry leaves after the first frost. Mulberry leaf tea is a natural health product for maintaining health and strengthening the body, and is especially suitable for long-term drinking by patients with diabetes and high blood pressure. Its production process is as follows:

Leaf picking and handling. It is best to pick leaves from the middle and upper parts of late-autumn mulberry trees that are free of pollution, pests, and diseases. In the Qian'an area of Hebei, mid-September is the best time. When picking leaves, remove the petioles, and be careful to separate old and tender leaves, keeping them as consistent as possible. After picking, rinse them clean with clear water, place them indoors in the shade until no water droplets remain, stack the mulberry leaves with petioles removed to a thickness of 8-12 layers, and cut them into strips 1 cm long and 0.3-0.5 cm wide.

Loading the steamer. Loosen the cut mulberry leaves so they do not stick together, and place them into a steamer basket pre-lined with clean gauze, with a thickness of 5-7 cm, so that they can be steamed evenly.

Steaming. Put clear water in a pot, and after it boils, place the steamer basket in the pot and cover tightly. Steam quickly over high heat and intense heat. After steam rises fully, switch to low heat and steam for 2.5-5 minutes according to how tightly the steaming vessel is sealed. Lift the lid to check; it is best if the mulberry leaves are soft and cooked while remaining fresh green. Immediately remove from the steamer and pour into a clean container to spread out and cool. Dispersing the steam immediately after covered steaming is key. During the steaming process, when the aroma becomes faintly fresh and fragrant, remove from the pot and spread out to cool; only then will the mulberry leaf tea have less grassy taste when brewed. The steaming time must be well controlled. If the time is too short, the grassy taste is not steamed out, the astringency is strong, and the liquor color tends toward green; if the time is too long, the mulberry leaves are steamed to yellow, the color is unattractive, and more nutrients are lost.

Rolling. After the mulberry leaves have cooled, use your hands to roll them in one direction on a wooden board so that the leaf shape is roughly curled and the leaf juice overflows and clings to the leaf surface; it is ready when rolling feels slippery to the hand.

Drying. Put the rolled mulberry leaves into a hot wok and stir continuously with a wooden rake so that moisture evaporates as quickly as possible. When they are more than half dry, switch to small, steady heat so that moisture further evaporates and becomes uniform. When the mulberry leaves are nearly dry, use high heat again and stir rapidly so they are heated evenly, then quickly remove from the heat. Pay attention at all times: when they are not sticky when pinched by hand, brittle when twisted by hand, the veins look crab-shell yellow to the eye, there is a fresh fragrance to the nose, and the taste is judged appropriate (toasted but not raw), they are finished. Quickly remove from the heat.

Cooling and sieving. Quickly pour the finished mulberry leaf tea into a clean container (do not use a plastic container) to spread out and cool. After cooling, use a suitable sieve to sift out excessively fine fragments.

Packaging. Grade and package the sifted dry mulberry tea according to color, shape, and taste. According to different needs, package it into small packages of different sizes. Small packages include different specifications such as 5-10 g, 20-30 g, and 50-100 g, and then they are packed in larger packaging. Finally, store in a dry, sealed container.

Ingredients: For the mulberry leaf tea made through the above processes, in order to enhance its health benefits, it can be used as a basic raw material and blended with other natural plants to make health teas, weight-loss teas, medicinal teas, and so on with different functions. However, regardless of the formula, the total amount of ingredients must not exceed 25% of the total amount of tea, with 20% being appropriate.