Roasted Japanese tea
Established: ordinarily caffeinated
Roasted vs decaffeinated
Hojicha is roasted Camellia sinensis tea, not automatically a low-caffeine or caffeine-free beverage. Brewing conditions and product type matter.
Roasting is not decaffeination
Hojicha (also written houjicha) describes roasted Japanese tea material. Roasting can transform aroma, colour and flavour, but it does not certify that the finished tea contains no caffeine. Hojicha remains a tea made from Camellia sinensis; a separate product-specific process or test would be needed to support an exceptional caffeine-free claim.
What Japanese data actually mean
Japan’s Standard Tables of Food Composition include caffeine values for prepared hojicha under specified conditions. The commonly cited standard infusion is around 20 mg per 100 g of brewed tea. That value is a composition-table reference for a particular preparation, not a laboratory certificate for every hojicha sold worldwide. Values taken from another tea or brewed under a different recipe should not be ranked as if the test conditions were identical.
Why some products may differ
Hojicha made primarily from stems may differ from leaf-heavy products. Leaf grade, roast, dry weight per cup, temperature and infusion length can change measured caffeine. Some specialist products report testing below a detection threshold, but such results belong to the specific batch and method; they do not establish a general rule about the category.
A practical decision
If you want roasted flavour without assuming low caffeine, check the ingredient list and measured values for the precise product. For people who must avoid caffeine, a verified naturally caffeine-free non-tea infusion may be more predictable than ordinary hojicha. 'Gentle tasting' is a sensory description, not a caffeine measurement.
Sources and verification
These references support the statements above. An official standard defines categories; a clinical paper measures a sample; a cultural record documents practice. Each source has a different scope. The publisher has not tested commercial products independently.
Explore related entries
How to cite this reference
OngTeh Editorial Team (2026). Is hojicha caffeine-free? What Japanese composition data show. OngTeh. https://ongteh.com/reference-hojicha-caffeine.html
This article is educational, not individualized medical advice, product certification or a substitute for specialist review. Corrections and research limitations are described in our editorial standards.