It is believed that these small balls of tea are nothing less than precious jade stones dropped from the talons of a Phoenix flying over a valley. This valley later became the place where people began to produce gunpowder tea. According to another, more realistic version of the origin of gunpowder tea, the name of this tea was given by an English merchant who noticed the similarity between the shape of the twisted tea leaves and gunpowder. This tea is also known under the names "Hyson" and "Pea leaves".

Fujian Zhu Green Tea was first talked about in the 17th century. A century later, Gunpowder tea became popular in the European and North American markets. Soon it reached the countries of North Africa, where people now drink it with honey and mint. For the production of Fujian Zhu, only two young upper leaves along with a tea bud are selected. These are then fried to give the tea its incomparable scent of fresh greens. The leaves are then molded into their famous shape. The most expensive grades continue to be twisted by hand.