Three-Date Buckwheat Tea

Why people make this tea

Nourilo has featured a “three-date tea” before, and it became a firm favourite with his readers — appreciated for its beautiful warming sweetness and its association with improving complexion and managing allergic sensitivities. This version adds golden buckwheat (jin qiao mai), also called tartary or bitter buckwheat, and the result is even more satisfying: the natural sweetness of the dates mingles with buckwheat’s nutty, toasty aroma, and the combination sits warmly in the stomach. Buckwheat is a remarkable grain — it contains the highest concentration of vitamins, minerals and trace elements of any grain commonly consumed, earning it the traditional title of “king of the five grains.” Modern research has increasingly focused on buckwheat’s rutin content and its associations with blood sugar balance, blood pressure, blood lipid levels, and anti-cancer properties. The three types of dates each contribute their own nuance: red dates warm and nourish blood; southern (black) dates are cooler and less drying; honey dates moderate and sweeten without excess heat. Together they are balanced, drinkable year-round, and — crucially — buckwheat is said to counteract the drying quality that dates can sometimes cause.