The processing of green tea can be simply divided into three steps: enzyme fixation, rolling and drying, among which the key lies in the first process of primary production, namely enzyme fixation. Fresh leaves are inactivated by enzyme activity, and the chemical components contained in them are basically unaffected by enzymes, and change through heat, thus forming the quality characteristics of green tea.

1, fixed

Immobilization plays a decisive role in the quality of green tea. Through high temperature, the characteristics of enzymes in fresh leaves are destroyed, the oxidation of polyphenols is stopped, and the leaves are prevented from turning red; At the same time, some water in the leaves is evaporated, which makes the leaves soft and creates conditions for kneading and shaping. With the evaporation of water, the low-boiling aromatic substances in fresh leaves evaporate and disappear, thus improving the aroma of tea. Except for the special tea, the process is carried out in the green-fixing machine. The factors that affect the quality of enzyme fixation are enzyme fixation temperature, leaves left, enzyme fixation machine type, enzyme fixation time and enzyme fixation method. They are a whole, interrelated and restricted.

Step 2 knead

Kneading is a process of shaping the shape of green tea. Using external force, the leaves are crushed and lightened, rolled into strips, reduced in size and convenient for brewing. At the same time, some tea juice overflows and adheres to the surface of leaves, which also plays an important role in improving the taste concentration of tea. The rolling process of making green tea can be divided into cold rolling and hot rolling. The so-called cold kneading is to spread the green leaves and roll them up; Hot rolling is to roll the leaves while they are still hot, and don't scatter them. The tender leaves should be cold-kneaded to keep the bright yellow-green soup color at the bottom of the tender green leaves, and the old leaves should be hot-kneaded to facilitate close knot and reduce fragments. At present, the kneading operation of bulk green tea has been mechanized, except for the famous and excellent tea which is still operated by hand.

dry

The purpose of drying is to evaporate water, tidy up appearance and give full play to tea fragrance. There are three drying methods: sun drying, frying and drying. In the drying process of green tea, it is usually dried first and then fried. Because the water content of the twisted tea leaves is still very high, if fried directly, lumps will quickly form in the pot of the frying machine, and the tea juice will easily stick to the pot wall. Therefore, tea leaves should be dried first to reduce the water content to meet the requirements of pot frying.