Delicious Thunder Tea (Lei Cha 擂茶) – Living Wholesome Vegetarian Food

Lei Cha 擂茶

Literally translates to Thunder Tea, is a Hakka dish. Lei 擂in Hakka dialect means “grind” but the homonym made it sound like thunder in Mandarin while Cha 茶 is tea in Chinese language. Thunder Tea rice meal or Lei Cha is considered healthy food as it contains ingredients like basil, cilantro, mint, parsley and ku lek sim, which were traditionally used to treat ailments. Mine was accompanied with organic brown rice and an assortment of stir-fried vegetables.

The stallholders told me they’ve added many different types of nuts in the green tea and it should taste less bitter than the traditional ones. The bitterness actually comes from a herb called “ku lek sim” which is supposed to have medicinal properties. I did not take to this dish with the tea. While the rice and vegetables on their own are very tasty, I decided this dish was not for me after a tiny sip of the green tea. I should have pinched my nose and down the tea as I believe it must be very good for the body; perhaps some detoxifying effect. If you like Lei Cha, this stall does not stinge on quality ingredients.

img 2139leichac2a9bondingtool — Preserved Turnip (Chye Poh). While turnip roots are rich in vitamin C and boiled turnip is common household remedy for cough and cold in certain culture, I couldn’t find out about the nutritional value of preserved turnips.Black and White Sesame Seeds. Sesame is among the seeds rich in quality vitamins and minerals. They are very good sources of B-complex vitamins such as niacin, folic acid, thiamin (vitamin B1), pyridoxine (vitamin B6), and riboflavin.

img 2143leichac2a9bondingtool — Cabbage is an excellent source of natural antioxidant, vitamin C and vitamin K. It also has adequate amount of minerals like potassium, manganese, iron, and magnesium.Carrots has exceptionally rich source of carotenes, beta-carotene, vitamin A. They are also rich in poly-acetylene antioxidant falcarinol, vitamin C and the B-complex groups of vitamins such as folic acid, vitamin B-6 (pyridoxine), thiamin, pantothenic acid, to name a few.

img 2150leichac2a9bondingtool — The main differences between brown and white rice lie in processing and nutritional content. White rice is sometimes enriched with the addition of vitamin B1, vitamin B3, and iron to make up for the loss during processing, magnesium is not added back into it. One cup (195 g) of cooked long grain brown rice contains 84 mg of magnesium while one cup of white rice contains 19 mg. Also, when the bran layer is removed to make white rice, the oil in the bran is also removed. Rice bran oil may help lower LDL cholesterol.

ndividuals who are allergic to soybeans, legumes, nuts and anything listed here, should refrain from eating the trigger foods.

Information credit on the nutritional value of foods were found Online and Wikipedia.

You think you have allergies click here to get Singapore’s most comprehensive sensitivity test

There are many good food stalls in Bukit Timah Market and Food Centre. It is very crowded during weekends especially in the morning.

P.S. If you love Lei Cha, I can vouch this stall serves it in its entirety, and even more! The quality is definitely not questionable.

Bukit Timah Market and Food Centre
116 Upper Bukit Timah Road,
Singapore 588172.

Living (wholesome vegetarian food)
Stall #02-188

Happy eating