srednivashtar:

 

35 ways the Japanese use old tea leaves

Source: http://mikawa-navi.com/info/chagara.htm
Translation and editing: http://srednivashtar.tumblr.com

Don’t throw away your used tea leaves anymore!! In Japanese, old tea leaves are called chagara (茶がら) and they can apparently be reused in various ways around the house. The following is a list of suggestions gathered from a small survey of Japanese. I haven’t personally tested any of these ideas yet, but I’m definitely going to save my chagara from now on!

Cooking 
1.   Dry the leaves, and then roast with soy sauce, mirin, and bonito flakes to make furikake (a topping for rice.)
2.    Add teas like genmai-cha (brown rice) and soba-cha (buckwheat) to fried rice.
3.    Add to tempura batter.
4.    Add to stir-fried vegetables.
5.    If you dry green tea leaves in the microwave, it turns into houji-cha (roasted green tea.)
6.    Finely chop in food processor and add to pound cake mix or manjuu (steamed bun) mix.
7.   Add sugar and use to smoke meat, fish, etc.
8.   Tea can also work as a preservative when added to meat.

Home and Garden
9.   Sprinkle the chagara on the ground and sweep; it will pick up dust and grime.
10.    Use it for cleaning tatami (Japanese floor mats); it will act as a sterilizer.
11.   Use it to polish wood floors.
12.   Dry and use as a deodorizer for shoes, ashtrays, refrigerators, cupboards, and bathrooms.
13.   Dry and scatter in flowerbeds; it will act as a fertilizer and an insecticide.
14.    Use as rabbit food.

Kitchen
15.   Mugi-cha (barley tea) in a bag can be used to polish sinks and gas stoves. This also works with pots, tableware, etc.
16.   Right after boiling and straining the leaves out, green tea can be used as a disinfectant.
17.   Use tea instead of water to wash out plastic bottles.
18.   Dry the chagara, put it in a cloth bag or tea bag, and use as a dehydrator for the fridge.
19.   Dry and sprinkle in trashcan to eliminate odors.
20.   Sprinkle in the water for the fish frier (魚焼き器)to reduce odor while frying.
21.   Zap the chagara in the microwave to eliminate food odors. Afterwards, use the dried leaves for another purpose – kill two birds with one stone.

Room and Bath
22.   Sprinkle chagara in the tub instead of bath salts.
23.   Put chagara into a net or stocking and use for a body massage or face wash.
24.   Cool a little bit of tea and mix it with wheat to make a facemask.
25.   Soak a piece of cotton with tea and use it for a facial; it’s supposed to help clear clogged pores and even out spots
26.   Wrap chagara in a dishtowel or net and put into the bath and enjoy the scent and color.
27.   Dry the chagara and put it in a pillow.
28.   Dry and use in a tea censer (茶香炉)
29.   Tea is supposed to be effective against athlete’s foot.
30.   Gargle with tea to kill germs and prevent colds.
31.   Smear on a rash or irritated area to disinfect.

Other Suggestions
32.   I drink bancha (a type of green tea) mixed with sesame and salt to relieve menstrual cramps. Also, if you get motion sickness, try adding a few drops of soy sauce to bancha before drinking. The tannin in tea is supposed to help calm an upset stomach.
33.   The other day, I saw on TV that chagara added to vinegar can help with constipation. I tried drinking some, and I was cured right away.
34.   My girlfriend uses chagara from black tea for dyed goods. It dyes quite nicely.
35.   After being open for about a month, tea can absorb moisture and change. You can roast this tea on a hotplate and make delicious houji-cha. To make it, spread aluminum foil on the hotplate and set the temperature to 110-120 degrees C. Turn the tea leaves as you heat them. When the leaves start to smell like houji-cha and turn slightly brown, it’s done. Add hot water to make fine homemade houji-cha!

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