Learn how to make guava leaf tea from wild foraged or organic, store-bought guava leaves. It brews a refreshing, rosy-tinged, flavorful tea with pleasing tannins. It's high in polyphenols and antioxidants and has significant health benefits, just like guava fruit. Guava leaf tea is easy to flavor and makes a fantastic caffeine-free alternative to green or black tea.
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⭐ Benefits
I was surprised when I first discovered that guava, a.k.a psidium guajava, is a top-of-the-list superfood. It grows abundantly in our mountains nearby. Because it's commonplace and accessible, indeed invasive, it seemed too easy.
However, fresh guavas are rated higher than many named superfoods like blueberries and have nearly four times as much vitamin C as oranges.
Then I discovered that the guava leaves themselves are a traditional medicinal food with curative and culinary uses. That was an even better surprise.
This link from the National Library of Medicine will give you an idea of the types of benefits there are from drinking guava leaf tea.
🌿 Ingredients
Guava leaf tea can be made from wild, foraged leaves or store-bought packaged guava leaves. Either way, for maximum benefits, choose fresh products that are organically grown.
- Leaves - Crisp, dry organic guava leaves.
- Water - Pure bottled or filtered water without chlorine.
🥄 Steps
Start by tearing large guava leaves coarsely to fit into a measuring cup. If you prefer to measure leaves by weight, you can find equivalents and full instructions in the recipe card below.
- Measure guava leaves and water.
- Combine guava leaves with water and bring to a boil in a saucepan.
- Cook in a pot with a lid over low heat for 15 minutes.
- Strain guava leaves from tea and toss out or compost the leaves.
👩🏽🌾 Harvest
If you want to have a stash of dried fresh guava leaves on hand, there are a couple of ways to score them besides ordering them online.
You can ask farmers selling guava fruit at the market if they can provide you with guava leaves, or if guava grows nearby, you have the fun of collecting them yourself.
Backyard
Perhaps you or your friend already have an organic guava tree in your backyard? Then, your task will be easy-peasy.
Simply snip individual branches with mature guava leaves from the tree. They will dry the best and have more flavor than soft, pale green leaves.
Wild Forage
It's such a pleasure to forage wild edibles. It's true there are some special considerations when heading out in the wild, and thoughtful, experienced foragers keep safety and their impact on the environment in mind.
If foraging is new to you, I think you'll find this list of beginners' tips below helpful.
- Forage off the beaten path and seek plants that are free from pesticides and run-off from human, animal, or manufacturing waste.
- Consider your effect on nearby plants when you decide on a tree to harvest from.
- Once you have your tree, check the backside of the leaves. Bugs and diseases like to hide out there.
- Only collect healthy, bug-free leaves.
- Collect branches with leaves straight from the tree and never off the ground.
- Selectively prune several branches 12-18 inches long.
- Keep the branches cool, and plan on washing them as soon as you return home.
💦 Wash
How you wash your harvested guava leaves depends on how pristine they are when you clip them from the tree.
Clean leaves
If your leaves are clean, both top and underside, and you plan on drying whole branches, you can leave them attached. It's easy this way to swish the whole branch in a large bowl or sink filled with water and give the leaves a final rinse with a sprayer.
Leaves with more dirt
If your leaves have more dirt or debris, I recommend removing them from the branches. Soak them a bit in a sink full of water and use a kitchen scrub sponge or soft brush to wash the backs of each leaf. Then, drain and rinse them once more in a sink of clean water.
♨️ Dry
You will be pleased to know how easy it is to dry guava leaves. Once your leaves are harvested and washed, you have three options listed below.
They are ready to brew guava leaf tea when they are curled and very crispy. You should be able to crumble them easily in the palm of your hand.
Hang to dry
Hang whole branches upside down in a warm, dry location. I like to tie loose bundles at one end with twine and use the twine to hang them from a ceiling hook. In most environments, leaves will be dry in 5 days or less.
Dry flat
Spread individual leaves in a single layer on trays. Place them in a warm, dry location. The top of a cupboard out of direct sunlight works well.
Then, simply let nature do its work. Depending on your humidity and temperature, they are generally dry in 3-5 days.
Use a dehydrator
I prefer to dry guava leaves naturally, and it's generally not necessary to use a dehydrator. However, if you live in a very humid environment, you can use a dehydrator to speed up the process and ensure crisp leaves that won't mold.
Spread individual leaves in a single layer on vented trays. Set your dehydrator to a low setting. Machines vary, but my compact Nesco dehydrator dries leaves in 3-4 hours at 135 degrees.
☕️ Serving
My go-to way to drink guava leaf tea is lightly sweetened and guzzled ice-cold on a hot afternoon because I am hooked on the deep color, earthy flavor, and gentle tannins.
I especially love drinking it in place of black iced tea because there aren't any jitters or wakeful nights from caffeine. I can enjoy guava leaves tea as much as I want!
Be sure to try the passion fruit guava leaf variation below if you branch out.
Iced
- Sweetened - Dissolve one tablespoon of raw sugar or agave syrup into each cup of tea while it's warm, and then pour over ice.
- Passion Fruit Guava - Add one and one-half tablespoons of fresh passion fruit juice to each cup of sweetened tea and pour over ice.
- Tart Lemon - Add 1-2 teaspoons of fresh lemon juice per cup, pour over ice and serve with a lemon slice.
- Sugar-free - Add 4-5 drops of liquid stevia for each cup of tea, or use the sugar substitute of your choice and pour over ice.
Hot
A steamy mug of warm guava leaf tea makes a soothing tisane and has gentle aromas of a tropical forest. The wafting perfume is magical on its own and can be enhanced by other flowers or herbs. Sweeten or not as you like.
- Mint - Add 4-5 fresh mint leaves to each cup of boiling hot tea and allow to cool enough to drink.
- Orange blossom - Add ⅛ teaspoon of orange blossom water to each cup of hot tea and serve with an orange slice.
- Rose - Add ⅛ teaspoon of rose water to each cup of hot tea.
- Cinnamon - Place a cinnamon stick in one cup of boiling hot tea. Steep until cool enough to drink, and serve tea with the cinnamon stick.
👩🏻🍳 Expert tips
- Harvest - Check the underside of leaves before clipping branches, and don't take leaves that have insects or white coatings.
- Dry - Place in a well-ventilated warm location out of direct sunlight and follow the instructions above.
- Strain - Remove guava leaves from boiled tea as soon as it's cooled for 5-10 minutes. Leaving the leaves to steep too long will make the tea more astringent and bitter.
- Store - Keep dried guava leaves in an airtight jar or tin in a cool cupboard for up to a year.
- Refrigerate - Let strained tea cool to room temperature and refrigerate after that.
- Iced - This recipe brews a flavorful tea that is perfect when ice melts a little into it.
- Hot - Make the recipe and add a little more water to taste before serving hot tea.
👩⚕️ Safety
Be one hundred percent sure of your plant identification and always follow your doctor's advice on consuming wild plants.
💭 FAQ
Guava leaf tea is considered generally safe and free from adverse side effects with moderate consumption. While some individuals may experience allergic reactions, it is rare. Consuming large amounts of guava tea could cause stomach upset or constipation, and pregnant or nursing women should consult their doctors' advice as with any herbal teas.
Many people have heard that guava tea aids weight loss, but so far, there is no conclusive scientific evidence to support the idea. It's true guava fruit itself can help maintain a healthy weight because it is low in calories and high in beneficial fiber. However, benefits from fiber don't pertain to guava tea. One way guava tea can assist weight loss is to replace high-calorie beverages like coffee with cream or sugary sodas with unsweetened guava leaf tea.
You can find packaged guava leaf tea at health food stores and online. It's a little harder to find organic, fresh-dried whole leaves but well worth the search. One source, MyIslandJamaica, sells wild-crafted, organic guava leaves on Etsy.
🍹More healthy beverages
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📖 Recipe
How To Make Guava Leaf Tea
Equipment
- 1 8-cup cooking pot with lid
- 1 medium strainer
- 1 6-cup serving jar or bottle
Ingredients
- 6 cups filtered water 1400 ml
- 1 ½ cups dry guava leaves 8 grams
Instructions
- Tear whole guava leaves and measure out 1 ½ cups dry guava leaves (8 grams). Measure out 6 cups filtered water (1400 ml).
- Combine leaves and water in a sauce pan and bring to a boil.
- Reduce heat to a slight boil and cook covered for 15 minutes.
- Remove pan from heat and let cool for 5-10 minutes.
- Strain tea from the leaves and transfer to a heat proof glass bottle or jar.
Serve
- Serve as is warm in a mug, poured over ice or choose from any of the flavoring options below.
Iced Tea Flavors
- Sweet- Dissolve one tablespoon of raw sugar or agave syrup into each cup of tea while it's warm, and then pour over ice.
- Passion fruit guava - Add one and one-half tablespoons of fresh passion fruit juice to each cup of sweetened tea and pour over ice.
- Tart lemon - Add 1-2 teaspoons of fresh lemon juice per cup, pour over ice and serve with a lemon slice.
- Sugar-free - Add 4-5 drops of liquid stevia or sugar substitute of your choice for each cup of tea and pour over ice.
Hot Tea Flavors
- Mint - Add 4-5 fresh mint leaves to each cup of boiling hot tea and allow to cool enough to drink.
- Orange blossom - Add ⅛ teaspoon of orange blossom water to each cup of hot tea and serve with an orange slice.
- Rose - Add ⅛ teaspoon of rose water to each cup of hot tea.
- Cinnamon - Place a cinnamon stick in one cup of boiling hot tea. Steep until cool enough to drink, and serve tea with the cinnamon stick.
Store
- Store strained and cooled tea in a glass jar or bottle with a lid in the refrigerator. Freshly made guava leaf tea lasts for 5 days.
Mary
Thank you for this excellent information. I have 3 guava trees, but I never knew about the medicinal use of the leaves, so I picked leaves today and will start the drying process tomorrow. I think I will try to include leaves when I cook kale, when ripe, I will make jam. As children, we always ate the fruit. Again, thanks for the info.
Poppy Hudson
You're welcome Mary!