Production process of bitter melon tea

Here is a detailed introduction to the production process of bitter melon tea:

1) Finishing.

The process of withering plays a decisive role in the quality of bitter melon tea. High temperature destroys the characteristics of enzymes in fresh leaves and stops the oxidation of polyphenols to prevent the leaves from turning red. At the same time, part of the water in the leaves is evaporated to soften the leaves, creating conditions for rolling and shaping. As the water evaporates, the low-boiling point aromatic substances with a grassy smell in the fresh leaves evaporate and disappear, thereby improving the aroma of the tea. Except for special teas, this process is carried out in a withering machine. Factors that affect the quality of withering include withering temperature, leaf quantity, type of withering machine, time, and withering method. They are a whole and are interrelated and restricted.

2) Rolling.

Rolling and twisting is a process of shaping the appearance of bitter melon tea. By utilizing external force, the leaves are broken and lightened, rolled into strips, reduced in size, and easy to brew. At the same time, part of the tea juice is squeezed out and adheres to the surface of the leaves, which also plays an important role in increasing the concentration of the tea flavor. The rolling and twisting process of making bitter melon tea is divided into cold rolling and hot rolling. The so-called cold rolling means that the withered leaves are rolled after being cooled; hot rolling means that the withered leaves are rolled while hot without being cooled. Young leaves should be cold rolled to keep the bright yellow-green soup color at the bottom of the young green leaves, and old leaves should be hot rolled to facilitate the tightening of the strips and reduce the amount of broken pieces. At present, except for the famous teas that are still operated manually, the rolling and twisting of most bitter melon teas has been mechanized.

.

3) Drying.

The purpose of drying is to evaporate the water, organize the appearance, and give full play to the tea fragrance. There are three drying methods: drying, frying and sun drying. The drying process of bitter melon tea is generally drying first, and then frying. Because the water content of tea leaves after rolling is still very high, if they are fried directly, they will quickly form lumps in the pot of the frying machine, and the tea juice will easily stick to the pot wall. Therefore, the tea leaves are first dried to reduce the water content to meet the requirements of pan frying.

The above is an introduction to the production process of bitter melon tea. Do you understand it?