Toasted Black Bean and Black Mulberry Tea

Why people make this tea

A few grey hairs at 40 is normal biology. Finding a cluster of them in your twenties or thirties is another matter — and an increasingly common one among people who carry heavy academic, professional, or emotional burdens. Traditional Chinese medicine has long connected hair colour and vitality to the health of the liver and kidney: these organ systems store the blood and essence from which healthy, pigmented hair is nourished. When stress, overwork, or chronic worry depletes these reserves, the hair loses its colour before its time.

This two-ingredient tea is Nourilo’s go-to recommendation for this pattern. Both ingredients are dark, almost black — and in Chinese food culture, dark foods have traditionally been associated with kidney support. Black mulberries are now recognised to be among the richest natural sources of anthocyanins, the pigment compounds that also play a role in antioxidant protection. Black soy beans with green kernel (not to be confused with ordinary black beans) are similarly rich in anthocyanins and plant protein. Together, they make a tea that is naturally pleasant — slightly nutty from the roasted beans, mildly fruity-sweet from the mulberries — and easy to keep up as a daily ritual.

Nourilo also notes that this tea has a calming effect on the nervous system, making it suitable for those whose greying is driven by chronic stress and poor sleep.