Make Hot Chocolate with Hojicha This Winter

Winter is good weather to drink both hot tea and hot chocolate. There’s nothing better than staying at home drinking hot tea in bed reading a book and drinking hot chocolate topped with toasted marshmallow after playing outside in the snow. So why not combine the two? Here we introduce you to hojicha infused hot chocolate.

Hojicha is one of the most popular teas in Japan. It is made by roasting green tea in a porcelain pot over charcoal unlike most other teas that are made by steaming the leaves. Roasting it removes bitterness of tea leaves and adds smokey caramel flavor. This flavor goes especially well with hot chocolate as it adds caramel flavor and smokey and nutty smell at the end. We recommend dusting the top with cacao powder. It adds a bit of bitterness at the end that cleanses your palate and boosts the chocolatey flavor. This hojicha hot chocolate goes very well with our hojicha shortbread cookies as well! Find the recipe for the cookies here.

Hojicha Hot Chocolate

Makes 1 cup

• 1 C (240ml) milk
• 1 (2.5g) Bokksu Organic Hojicha Tea
• 4 Tbsp (40g) white chocolate chips
• ¼ tsp (1g) vanilla extract
• ½ tsp (3g) honey
• Milk foam (optional)
• Cacao powder (optional)

1. In a small saucepan, combine the milk and Bokksu Organic Hojicha Tea. Heat over the low heat until simmering. Turn off the heat and steep for about 5 minutes. 
2. Bring to a simmer again and turn off the heat. Add in white chocolate chips, vanilla extract and honey. Mix with a spatula until the white chocolate is all melted.
3. Pour into a cup and top with milk foam and cacao powder.

Treat yourself with a cup of hojicha hot chocolate today. If you liked this hot chocolate, try matcha hot chocolate as well!