Ku ding 苦丁茶;
Ku Ding Cha is a beverage tea consumed in China as an alternative to the more common, ordinary green tea. The standard Chinese tea, from Camellia sinensis, is known as cha, and this term is then applied to other herbs that are consumed in similar manner. Ku Ding describes this particular beverage tea: ku means bitter, which aptly describes the initial taste, and ding is a Chinese character that looks like a spike (middle character, below), depicting the appearance of the dried, long leaves when they are twisted into a narrow nail-like piece; they can also be formed into balls or rolls (photos next page). The herb name is often written as a single transliterated word-kudingcha-and is sometimes misspelled without the g, as kudincha.
Kuding tea is a medicinal tea that has been used in traditional Chinese medicine for thousands of years. The word ‘Ku’ means bitter and the Chinese character for ‘Ding’ (‘丁’）means ‘spike’ as is the shape this tea. Needle kuding tea, is commonly known as ‘bitter nail tea’. The leaves used to make this tea are from the evergreen Ilex Kuding cha plant which is grown in China. The long narrow leaves are twisted together to form distinctive long stick/spike-like shapes. Another distinctive feature, as its name implies, is its bitter taste. Though, some drinkers find that the bitterness is followed by a slightly sweet taste.
When making Kuding tea it’s a good idea to use just 2 needles/spikes if it’s your first experience of the tea because of its strong bitter taste. As you become accustomed to the tea, then you could increase it to 3-4 needles. Begin by warming your tea cup and teapot with hot water. Then steep the Kuding tea in the pot using hot water for two minutes. The spikes can be used several times – after the second brewing you will need to increase the steeping time.
In traditional Chinese medicine Kuding tea was famous for its many uses and it is popular still for ailments such as improving memory and focusing the mind; calming fidgetiness; alleviating the common cold, being useful for clearing the head and rhinitis; itching eyes; headaches; alleviating sinusitis; and treating bronchitis. It is also said to improve digestion; lower blood pressure and reduce cholesterol. Kuding tea contains many anti-oxidants so is helpful for detoxing.
Do not drink Kuding tea during pregnancy or if you’ve recently given birth or are breast feeding; during menstruation; have low blood pressure. Also do not drink 1 month before and after surgery. In the past, we’ve often received questions regarding Kuding tea and fertility. Because of the complexity of this topic it’s difficult to give a general answer. Please consult a local medical practitioner or Chinese medicine doctor.
