When I first heard of purple basil iced tea I was very hesitant because I’m used to basil being savory in pasta dishes, bruschetta, and sometimes in our eggs in the morning when we are feeling fancy. The concept of making the basil into a sweet tea was very foreign. But I decided that it was worth at least trying once and ever since that has been my go-to summer drink even more so than mint tea.
Iced tea in the summer is one of my favorite things. I will drink any kind. the heavy sugared kind from the store, homemade from tea bags, meadow tea, sun tea, any of it. But in order to stick with my family’s goal of living a healthier lifestyle, we almost never buy the premade iced tea from the store.
I started making mint tea from the garden when I first grew mint in my garden 6 or 7 years ago. It’s one of my favorites but as a nursing mom, mint can diminish your milk supply and I don’t want to risk that so two out of the last three years I haven’t been able to enjoy what used to be my summer staple.
Basil tea is something that you will find in my fridge at almost any given time in the summer now. It is a family favorite and I love to offer a sweet iced beverage to my guests that feels at least a bit unique. And that it is. Purple basil tea is a unique take on the typical summer iced drink that is easy to make and enjoyed by the whole family.
Can you drink purple basil tea hot?
You definitely can but I haven’t tried it. I just enjoy the flavor of it iced and fresh so much that I’m sticking to what I know. We actually ended up just drying and storing all of our mint tea to have hot over the winter because that’s a tried and true favorite and one that our friends won’t hesitate to ask for.
What does iced purple basil tea taste like?
Purple basil itself has a strong scent and floral notes. People say it has a strong clove taste to it. I don’t necessarily get clove notes but I enjoy it nonetheless.
Is purple basil tea purple?
Funnily enough, no. I think this tea is almost more enjoyable to make than drink just because of the changing colors that the tea goes through. Read on to see pictures of how the colors change.
How do you sweeten purple basil tea?
I use honey to sweeten my tea when the water is still very warm. I think honey adds to the already floral notes of the tea and it incorporates very easily in the warm water. I’m sure you can use any sweetener you like, but I haven’t recipe-tested with anything other than honey.
Do you need any specialty equipment to make basil tea?
I like to use a fine mesh strainer and cheesecloth to make sure I’m not getting any dirt particles or little bugs that didn’t get washed off initially in my final product.
Something I really like using is a kitchen scale. It’s how I came up with the exact quantity of basil to use. It weighed 1 oz, but when I packed it into my measuring cup, it filled the cup measurement. I use my kitchen scale for a lot of my baking and cooking because I can just zero out the scale and weigh out my ingredients without using a lot of different measuring cups. It’s also super helpful to have with most sourdough products.
How to make purple basil tea:
Bring 8 cups of water to a boil in a stock pot or plan to pour it into a heat-proof bowl. I transferred my water to a clear glass bowl so that the process could be seen clearly but I often make it in the stock pot that I boil the water in.
Once at a boil, turn off the heat and add 1 oz or approximately 1 packed cup of rinsed purple basil to the water. I weighed how much basil I use because the measurement for a cup of fresh herbs doesn’t feel like it matches the weight. If you have a scale, I highly recommend using it to measure. As you make this recipe, you can increase or decrease the quantity of basil that you use to suit your taste.
Let the basil steep for 10 minutes. The purple color will slowly fade from the basil leaves and turn the water a shade of blue and the leaves themselves will turn green. This is such a beautiful process. Every so often you can stir the basil leaves in the water and you’ll see it become a darker blue.
Once steeped, remove all the basil leaves using tongs or a strainer.
Pour ½ cup honey into the still warm tea, stirring to incorporate. Your blue-tinted tea will turn into a gold or pink-hued drink. Once again, I love the visual change with this drink. It seems pretty magical to me and I know my daughter enjoys watching the change too.
Strain your tea through a fine mesh strainer and/or a cheesecloth to make sure there is no additional dirt or small bugs in your final drink.
Chill until ready to serve. Add a sliced lemon or lime for garnish and added flavor. You can also just add about a quarter cup of lemon juice to the whole pitcher, but personally, I feel like the slice of lime is preferable.
Iced Purple Basil Tea
Equipment
- Cheesecloth (Optional)
- Strainer
Ingredients
- 8 cups Water
- 1 oz Purple basil Approximately one packed cup
- ½ cup Honey
- Lemon juice to taste or sliced lemons or limes for garnish
Instructions
- Bring 8 cups of water to a boil in a stock pot or plan to pour it into a heat proof bowl.
- Once at a boil, turn off the heat and add 1 oz or approximately 1 packed cup of rinsed purple basil to the water.
- Let steep for 10 minutes. The purple color will slowly fade from the basil leaves and turn the water a shade of blue and the leaves themselves will turn green.
- Once steeped, remove all the basil leaves using tongs or a strainer.
- Pour ½ cup honey to the still warm tea, stirring to incorporate. Your blue tinted tea will turn to a gold or pink hued drink.
- Strain your tea through a fine mesh strainer and/or a cheesecloth to make sure there is no additional dirt or small bugs in your final drink.
- Chill until ready to serve. Add a sliced lemon or lime for garnish and added flavor.
Save it for later!
Can I use ‘regular’ green basil for this drink? I’m intrigued to try it this summer!
You can use “regular” green basil for this drink, it would have a different taste though. I have not made it other types yet but plan to this summer. I’m growing to grow lemon basil and am excited to try that in tea form!