{
    "id": 1070261,
    "title": "Barley tea: mugicha, boricha and how to brew it",
    "slug": "barley-tea-mugicha",
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    "url": "https://teas.co.uk/wiki/barley-tea-mugicha/",
    "modified": "2026-09-18T00:45:33+01:00",
    "excerpt": "Roasted barley tea is the caffeine-free everyday drink of Japan and Korea, served hot or ice-cold. What it tastes like, how to brew it, and the gluten warning.",
    "content_text": "Barley tea is roasted barley grain brewed in water. No tea leaves, no caffeine, and a taste that is toasty, grainy and faintly sweet \u2014 somewhere between popcorn and a crust of bread. In Japan it is mugicha, drunk ice-cold by the jug all summer; in Korea it is boricha, often served hot or cold in place of water at the table; in China you will meet it as damai cha.\r\nIt is the drink to reach for when you want something warm and comforting with no caffeine at all.\r\nOne important warning: it is not gluten-free\r\nBarley is one of the cereals that contains gluten, so barley tea is not suitable for anyone with coeliac disease or a gluten intolerance. Straining the grain out does not change that: the gluten is in the liquid.\r\nThe NHS lists barley among the grains people with coeliac disease need to avoid. NHS: coeliac disease treatment\r\nCaffeine-free and gluten-free are different questions, and barley tea answers only the first.\r\nHow to brew it\r\nBags (easiest): one bag per 500ml of freshly boiled water, 3 to 5 minutes. Many packs are sized for a jug rather than a mug, so check the pack before you use one bag per cup.\r\nLoose roasted grain: 15g per litre. Either simmer for 5 minutes and strain, or steep in just-boiled water for 10 minutes.\r\nCold brew (the classic summer version): one bag or 15g of grain in a litre jug of cold water, in the fridge overnight, then strain. It is smoother and sweeter cold than hot, and it keeps for a couple of days covered in the fridge.\r\nBarley tea is very forgiving: it does not turn bitter or astringent the way tea does if you leave it too long.\r\nWhat to buy\r\n\r\nRoasted barley, plain, is the standard. ITO EN and Korean brands both sell it in bags and loose.\r\nCorn and barley blends are common in Korea \u2014 sweeter, rounder, and worth trying.\r\nCheck the pack volume, not just the bag count: a 54-bag pack designed for 1-litre jugs makes a lot more than a 54-bag pack of mug-sized bags.\r\n\r\nBarley tea, genmaicha and hojicha are all different\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\nDrink\r\nWhat is in it\r\nCaffeine\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\nBarley tea (mugicha)\r\nRoasted barley grain only\r\nNone\r\n\r\n\r\nGenmaicha\r\nGreen tea with toasted rice\r\nYes\r\n\r\n\r\nHojicha\r\nRoasted green tea\r\nYes, a little\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\nAll three taste toasty; only one is caffeine-free.\r\nCommon questions\r\nDoes barley tea have caffeine?\r\nNo. There is no tea leaf in it.\r\nCan children drink it?\r\nIt is a common family drink in Japan and Korea, caffeine-free and mild. As with anything, check the ingredients of the exact product.\r\nIs it the same as barley water?\r\nNo. Barley water is made from unroasted pearl barley, often with lemon and sugar. Barley tea is roasted grain, unsweetened.\r\nWhy is mine bitter?\r\nUsually too much grain, or a very dark roast. Use less, or switch to a cold brew.",
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