Java tea isn’t a potent brew made from coffee and ordinary Camellia sinensis tea. Also known as kidney tea, it refers to an herbal tea made from the Orthosiphon plant, which flourishes on the Indonesian island of Java. The plant also grows throughout Indonesia as well as in Malaysia and Thailand. In all three countries, the tea has long been consumed as medicine for kidney and related disorders.
The most common scientific name is Orthosiphon stamineus benth. The plant is also known as Orthosiphon aristatus and Ocimum aristatum. In English, it's most often called the cat's whiskers plant.
Java Tea and Seeds Sold in Online Stores
Drinking this gentle, non-caffeine herbal tea made from the leaves and stalks of the orthosiphon plant is supposed to induce urination, reduce uric acid, and dissolve kidney stones. It's also believed to relieve gout, inflamed joints, muscle spasms and the discomfort related to gall bladder and urinary infections. Scientific studies in Malaysia and elsewhere are now attempting to verify the claims. Studies with rats suggest that the ingredients in Java tea could be a treatment for hyperglycemia, diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol.
Organically grown Java tea can be bought through online stores specializing in Asian foods and herbs. In Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand, shops selling organic foods sometimes sell the tea in individual sachets. Traditional, or “Chinese,” pharmacies also sometimes sell the tea in loose form.
How to Grow Kumis Kucing, the Cat's Whiskers Plant
U.S. and Asian online shops sell orthosiphon seeds, although the principal customers are home gardeners who grow the perennial plant for the pretty little flower, which may be whitish, light blue, lavender or violet. It also attracts butterflies and bees. The plants are not difficult to grow in normal to slightly alkaline soil with some sun, but the soil must always remain damp. Planted in the spring, the shrub-like plants may grow as high as one meter. They bloom in late summer or early fall and attract bees, butterflies and birds.
The small flowers appear at the end of stems that run up and down a center stalk, creating a tapered cone effect (click center image below for best effect). The flowers themselves sprout fine long whitish filaments. These resemble a cat’s whiskers, and so the plant is often called in local languages. In Malay and Indonesian, the plant is known as misai kucing, kumis kucing, kumis kuching or koemis kuetjing--all of which mean "cat's moustache" or "cat's whiskers" or "cat's beard." (Yes, by the way, the name of the capital of Sarawak, Kuching, does mean "cat" or "cats.")
Other common names for the plant are cat's whiskers (English), yaa nuat maeo (Thai), moustaches de chat (French) and feuilles de barbiflore (French). A less-used Indonesian name for the plant is remujung.
Making Kidney or Java Tea
With individual sachets, a cup or pot of Java tea is made like any other cup of tea. To make it from scratch, thoroughly dry out the leaves and stalks. A pestle or a rolling pin can be used to crush them into more compact form, but don’t reduce to a powder. Store in an air-tight jar. As with any loose tea, use a small strainer or tea ball to brew the tea for several minutes in freshly boiled water. To get the most benefits and keep the water warm, let the tea brew up to 10 minutes in a teapot or in a cup with a lid.
The color will be brownish-green. The smell is slightly flowery, like many another herb tea. It has neither the refreshing tart taste of roselle tea nor the acrid aroma of bael tea. It tastes salty and bitter.
Susan Cunningham - I'm a well-traveled writer and editor living in Thailand. My travel articles have appeared in in-flights, newspapers and guidebooks.
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