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Introduction to Yudu Lei Tea

In the past, among the people in Yudu, every household had a Lei Cha bowl, and eating Lei Cha was very popular. No matter the poor or the rich, men, women, young or old, they always drink a few bowls of rich and mellow Lei Cha after work and school. If relatives and friends come to the door, it is even more necessary to treat each other with Lei Cha.

On weekdays, no matter where you go, you can almost smell the fragrant tea brewing and the sound of “sucking” tea brewing from the courtyard. There is a folk song that says: “Every family is beating tea, and every household is fragrant; the treasure of beating tea is better than ginseng soup.”

Hakka Leicha in Yudu has been handed down from generation to generation and has a long history. Housewives have been obsessed with it since childhood, making tea has become their specialty.

An expert in making tea is highly respected by people. Look at her, put a handful of fried rice, a handful of tea leaves, a handful of sesame seeds, a few slices of star anise, a few slices of orange peel, and a pinch of peanuts into the special ceramic tea bowl with straight grooves carved on the inner wall. In the middle, add a few spoons of tea oil, and clamp the mortar tightly between the knees.

Then he picked up the two-foot-long lei tea grass made of camellia oleifera wood, which was as thick as a hoe handle, and vigorously rubbed the raw materials along the wall of the bowl. But seeing both arms fluttering and the drum spinning wildly, it is dizzying. Not long after, the raw materials in the bowl turned into a thick sauce blue paste, which is called “tea bait” among the people. Finally, pour it into boiling water, and you will have a bowl of delicious and fragrant Lei Cha.

So, the whole family sits around the table, you have a bowl, I have a bowl, grab a handful of fried beans, peel a few fried peanuts, live in harmony, harmony and beauty, enjoy family happiness, and talk about family fun. No wonder people who have tasted enough of the sweetness say: “I would rather have less rice than Leicha.”

Yudu Leicha is not only a delicious drink, but also an appetizing soup for the elderly and sick. It not only has the function of making the mouth and tongue invigorated, but also has a fragrance on the teeth and cheeks after drinking, with endless aftertaste. If you drink it in hot weather, you will relieve heat and thirst, and feel refreshed; if you drink it in cold weather, you will be able to protect yourself from the cold, but you will be full of warmth. Lei Cha is rich in nutrients, easy to absorb and digest, and is of great benefit to people’s physical and mental health.

With the change of people’s lifestyle, traditional Lei Cha, which takes a lot of time, is mostly replaced by bubble tea in Pingchou area. But the people in that remote mountain village still love to eat Lei Cha as always. If you pay a visit there, the hospitable housewives will definitely treat you with bowls of steaming and fragrant traditional Lei Cha.

Lei Cha, Lei Zhe, grinding also. Leicha is a health-preserving tea drink made by putting tea leaves, sesame seeds, peanuts and other raw materials into a bowl and then brewing them with boiling water. In the rich and colorful food culture of the Hakka people, Lei Cha is the most representative delicacy. Whether it is a wedding celebration, or a visit from relatives and friends, you must drink Lei Cha. The Hakka people are very warm and hospitable, and it is a traditional grand etiquette to entertain guests from afar with Lei Cha.

Leicha is made by women. Its Leicha has a set of tools called “Three Treasures of Leicha”: one is a pottery bowl with a diameter of 50 cm and thick and dense grooves on the inner wall; The third is the “laozi” made of bamboo strips to filter out the broken residues. To make Leicha, use a handful of good tea leaves, an appropriate amount of sesame seeds, a few slices of licorice, etc., put them into the bowl, hold the edge of the bowl.

The inner wall of the bowl is regularly rotated along the direction of the groove, and the tea leaves are ground into crushed mud by occasional beating in the middle of the bowl, and then the slag is filtered out with a ladle. The paste food left in the bowl is called “tea mud”, or “Lei Cha Jiao Zi”. Pour into boiling water, stir properly, and add fried rice, peanuts, watercress, rice crackers, hot skin, etc., and you will have a bowl of Lei Cha that combines aroma, sweetness, bitterness and spicyness.