Last evening, I made a big pot of hibiscus tea. I purchase dried organic (whole) hibiscus flowers to use in a variety of ways, but the main way is to prepare tea. I normally make enough to put into one of the large glass pitchers that you see here. In doing so, there’s enough to last throughout the day.
I wish you could see the reddish color of the tea, I wasn’t able to capture it in the above post. My daughter tell me the color reminds her of fruit punch. We love the lovely floral scent of the hibiscus flower, but it’s more than a lovely flower… hibiscus is a great source of antioxidants and it’s extremely high in vitamin C.
With the above tea I also added cinnamon bark, ginger and soursop leaves and while this would be perfectly fine on its own I did add a bit of organic sugar to the blend. I’ll carry some of this with me to work today, a portion will be added to my daughters thermos and the remaining will be placed in the refrigerator to be consumed when we return home today.
I’ve never really liked Hibiscus much – mostly because companies pass it off as tea which it isn’t…it’s a tisane…a flower, which I know you know 🙂 I just think that isn’t over used by companies in their flavored teas. I guess it’s good they are using a natural ingredient and NOT an artificial one – and I think it’s because when I drink tea I want it to be a black, green, white, yellow,Oolong, etc…tea…straight-up. I know they is a purpose for it – but I think it’s better iced in fruity tisanes, I guess. Yeah…I tend to ramble when it comes to Hibiscus! LOL Sorry! I think it’s too sweet and/or bitter/tarty-sweet for me.
On the other hand…I think it would work better for me, personally, if I were try it in a smoothie…maybe I will do that 🙂
Oh my…there I go rambling again! hahahahaha…
Jennifer recently posted..Energizing Black Bean Dip & Happy Mail on a Monday
@Jennifer, While it might be overused it still does have a lot of benefits. I purchase hibiscus in bulk, so I don’t purchase it with anything else.
I do like the flavor. Tea or tisane? Just like the term vegan, I’m not getting hung up on the specifics. Over the years what’s considered tea has changed a lot and covers more than just tea leaves. 🙂 If I say “tisane” many (who might be searching for information) might not be able to access this site. Using the term “tea” and people will get that. Currently, a simple web search for Hibiscus tea, Hibiscus tisane or Hibiscus tisane tea will show what I’m talking about. Searching Google, using the term tea pulls over one million sites. While the term tisane pulls a little over 133,000. I mainly drink herbal teas, because of the benefits that they do have and while the ones that you mentioned (black, green, white, yellow, Oolong) are beneficial I do find the herbs, flowers, barks and roots blows them out of the water… even more so since I control the process by purchasing the individual herb and combine based on what results I’m trying to achieve.
Personally, I’ve found I do a much better job blending the single ingredients together than the numerous store bought tea blends I’ve tried. Also, it goes back to making exactly what I want, which is why I prefer purchasing the raw materials and doing it myself. 😉
Just my thoughts… 🙂
Aynaria recently posted..Fermenting Adventures: Look at my SCOBY!
@Opal,
Oh – for sure! The level of Vitamin C is CRAZY Awesome!!!! I also know a lot of people choose hibiscus because of it being caffeine free and liking that over the actual teas, etc.
That and I am thinking just the flowers might be better than it being an ingredient or added after thought like some tea company’s do with it. Might have to try it at home like you said 🙂
Jennifer recently posted..Vegan Contest & Giveaway ~ Garden of Life’s Marley Fit!
@Jennifer, I know it’s cleared up my daughters minor skin breakouts and the ones I received from cleansing. My daughter even commented on that. It also pulled out a lot of years from candida. I can’t remember why I got out of the habit of drinking the hibiscus tea. I used to consume it several times weekly. Back then, I purchased my hibiscus petals in bulk from a different company.
Hibiscus? That’s our national flower. Vitamin C? Gee!!! I didn’t know that! Lots of it here.
suituapui recently posted..A little too late…
@suituapui, Oh I did not know that! Yes, it is an excellent source of vitamin C. It’s also effective against urinary tract infection, ecoli, candida and a whole host of other issues. I have noticed the dark spot on my skin has cleared up since I’ve started drinking it regularly. I noticed, while cleansing from candida, some of the toxins were pushed out of my skin causing patches and in a few cases dark spots! it’s nice to see the impact this is having on my overall well being. I used to consume it daily, but got out of the practice.
Aynaria recently posted..Burning incense – wonderful fly repellent
Wow I had no idea hibiscus was so healthy! Thanks for sharing!
Holly recently posted..10 Best Complete Bee Hives For Sale