This traditional hot or cold brew hibiscus tea recipe (agua de jamaica) is my go-to blend. Infused with zesty orange peel and a warm kick of ginger, it’s a simple, comforting recipe that works as a cozy winter mug or a refreshing summer iced tea.
Be sure to check out my strawberry hibiscus lemonade, elderberry hibiscus tea, or this pineapple hibiscus sun tea.
A Quick Look: Hot or Cold Brew Hibiscus Tea Recipe
- 📝 Recipe Name: Hot or Cold Brew Hibiscus Tea Recipe (Agua de Jamaica)
- 🕒 Total Time: 15 minutes active (plus 6–8 hours hands-off time if making cold brew hibiscus tea)
- 👥 Servings: 8
- 🎯 Key Ingredients: Loose leaf hibiscus tea (flor de jamaica), fresh ginger, orange peel
- 🌱 Dietary Info: Vegan, vegetarian, plant-based, caffeine-free, unsweetened optional
- ✨ Best For: Iced hibiscus tea, cozy hot mugs, make-ahead drinks, and everyday sipping
- 💕 Why You’ll Love It: Bright, tart, refreshing, easy to make hot or cold, and simple to customize with citrus, ginger, and your favorite sweetener.
Jump to:
- A Quick Look: Hot or Cold Brew Hibiscus Tea Recipe
- Why This Recipe Works
- Ingredients & Substitutions
- How to Make Hibiscus Tea (Agua de Jamaica)
- Tested Tips
- Make It Your Way (Customization Ideas)
- Perfect Pairings
- Storage & Meal Prep
- Hibiscus Tea Recipe (Agua de Jamaica) FAQs
- More Tea Recipes
- 📖 Recipe
- 💬 Comments
As someone who loves keeping big batches of homemade drinks in the fridge, this hibiscus tea has been a staple in my kitchen for years. A pitcher of something bright, cold, and ready to pour makes it so much easier to skip store-bought juices and sodas.
I love this agua de jamaica recipe because it is simple, flexible, and easy to customize depending on the season. Keep it classic, add citrus, warm it up with ginger and cinnamon, or cold brew it overnight for a smoother flavor.
Everything comes together quickly with a hot steep, or you can let it brew hands-off in the fridge overnight. Tea bags work in a pinch, but dried hibiscus flowers give you the boldest color and best flavor.
If you love drinks with lots of flavor, try my homemade horchata, this watermelon juice recipe, and homemade aguas frescas, or for more ideas, check out these easy drink recipes.
Why This Recipe Works
- You can make it hot or cold. This recipe gives you two easy methods: a quick hot steep when you want it fast, or a smooth overnight cold brew when you want something more hands-off.
- The flavor is bold but balanced. Tart hibiscus flowers, fresh ginger, and orange peel create a drink that tastes bright, layered, and refreshing without feeling heavy.
- It is easy to keep on hand. This homemade hibiscus tea works for afternoon sipping, summer cookouts, easy entertaining, or simple drink prep for the week.
You might also like zero-waste pineapple tea (hot or iced); it makes the whole house smell amazing. Or explore my guide on calming herbal tea recipes, which includes my favorite traditional Mexican cuachalalate tea blend.
Ingredients & Substitutions
Here’s what you’ll need to make hibiscus jamaica tea.
- Dried Hibiscus Flowers: Use 4 tablespoons dried hibiscus flowers, also called flor de jamaica, from the international aisle or a local Mexican market. For the boldest color and flavor, loose flowers are best. If using hibiscus tea bags, use 4 to 6 tea bags for 2 quarts of water, depending on how strong you like it.
- Fresh Ginger: Fresh sliced ginger gives the best flavor, but you can use ¼ to ½ teaspoon ground ginger if that’s what you have. Start small because ground ginger is stronger and can take over quickly.
- Orange Peel: You can use 1 tablespoon dried orange peel granules or 1 washed organic orange, quartered with the peel left on. If your orange is not organic, wash it really well before using. You can also swap in lemon, lime, or grapefruit for a different citrus flavor.
- Sweetener: Pure maple syrup, agave, honey, or cane sugar all work well. You can also leave it as an unsweetened hibiscus tea if you prefer a sharper, cranberry-like flavor.
Scroll down to the recipe card for the full list of ingredients.
Pair your warm mug with a slice of this vegan banana bread recipe or healthy oat bran muffins for a cozy afternoon snack.
How to Make Hibiscus Tea (Agua de Jamaica)
Scroll down to the recipe card for full measurements.
Method 1: Overnight Fridge Method
- Step 1: Add the hibiscus, orange, and ginger to a large 2-quart jar or pitcher. Pour in 8 cups cold filtered water, stir, cover, and refrigerate for 6 to 8 hours or overnight.
- Step 2: Strain into a clean pitcher. Discard the solids, sweeten to taste, and serve over ice.
Method 2: Quick Hot-to-Iced Method, or Hot Tea
- Step 3: Add the hibiscus flowers, water, orange peel or orange wedges, and ginger to a tea kettle or medium saucepan. Bring just to a boil, then immediately remove from the heat. Cover and steep for 10 to 15 minutes.
- Step 4: Strain into a heat-safe pitcher or mugs. Sweeten while warm, then enjoy as a hot hibiscus tea or chill and serve over ice.
Tested Tips
- For hot hibiscus tea, 10 to 15 minutes is usually enough. Steeping much longer can make hibiscus taste too strong or bitter.
- Adjust to taste after chilling. Hibiscus becomes more refreshing once cold, so taste it after chilling and add more sweetener or citrus if needed.
- For the smoothest tea, stir sweetener into the tea while it is still warm. For cold brew, use a liquid sweetener so it blends easily.
Next, try this blueberry lemonade recipe, iced matcha latte, or this iced green tea lemonade.
Make It Your Way (Customization Ideas)
One of the best things about hibiscus jamaica tea is how easy it is to customize based on the season or what you have in your kitchen:
- Fresh Herbs: Toss a sprig of fresh mint into your pitcher or mug while it steeps.
- Warm Winter Spices: Drop a cinnamon stick or a whole clove into the saucepan during the hot method to add a cozy, warming spice profile perfect for cooler months.
- Citrus Swaps: Add extra orange, lemon, lime, or grapefruit slices after brewing.
- Make it sparkling: Pour chilled hibiscus tea over ice and top with sparkling water.
Perfect Pairings
Serve this cold brew agua de jamaica with Mexican favorites, like a loaded Mexican rice bowl, tacos de papa, tacos with refried beans, or a bowl of nachos.
Or if you're having a BBQ, some easy sides that pair great are cowboy caviar salad or pinto bean salad with corn. Tortilla chips with salsa tatemada roja, creamy jalapeno sauce, or spicy chile de árbol salsa all work great.
Storage & Meal Prep
- To store: Strain the hibiscus tea, then store it in an airtight glass jar or pitcher in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
- For meal prep: Brew a batch ahead of time and keep it unsweetened in the fridge. Sweeten each glass to taste when serving, especially if different people like different levels of sweetness.
- To serve later: Stir before pouring and serve cold over ice. For a warm mug, gently heat only what you plan to drink and avoid boiling, especially if you brewed it with fresh orange.
Hibiscus Tea Recipe (Agua de Jamaica) FAQs
For hot hibiscus tea, steep dried hibiscus flowers for 10 to 15 minutes after removing the pot from the heat. For cold brew hibiscus tea, steep it in the refrigerator for 6 to 8 hours, or overnight.
Hibiscus tea can be better hot or cold depending on how you like it. Hot hibiscus tea tastes stronger and more tart, while cold brew hibiscus tea tastes smoother, lighter, and more refreshing. This recipe includes both methods.
Yes, you can brew hibiscus tea in cold water. Add dried hibiscus flowers, orange, ginger, and cold water to a pitcher, then refrigerate for 6 to 8 hours or overnight.
Agua de jamaica is a traditional Mexican drink and one of the most popular types of agua fresca. Made from dried hibiscus flowers (flor de jamaica) steeped in water. It has a bright ruby-red color and a tart, refreshing flavor that's often compared to cranberry with subtle floral notes. It's commonly served cold over ice, but I enjoy it both hot and cold throughout the year.
Did you try this recipe? Let me know what you thought by leaving a comment below and sharing it on Instagram, Facebook, & Pinterest! 💛
📖 Recipe
Hot or Cold Brew Hibiscus Tea Recipe (Agua de Jamaica)
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Ingredients
- 4 tablespoons dried hibiscus bulk tea or 4-6 hibiscus tea bags, also known as flor de Jamaica
- 8 cups filtered water
- 1 tablespoon dried orange peel granules, or a quartered, washed organic orange, quartered (peel left on)
- ½ inch fresh ginger, peeled (if not organic) and halved
- maple syrup, optional, (or raw honey if not vegan), to taste
Instructions
Method 1: Cold Brew Method
- Add the hibiscus, orange, sliced ginger to a large 2-quart glass jar or pitcher.
- Pour 8 cups of cold filtered water over the ingredients and stir.
- Cover tightly and place in the refrigerator for 6 to 8 hours (or overnight) to let the flavors fuse.
- Pour through a fine-mesh strainer into a clean pitcher. Discard the used flowers, orange, and ginger. Stir in maple syrup to taste and serve over ice.
Method 2: Quick Hot-to-Iced Method (Or for a Hot Mug)
- Add the hibiscus, water, orange peel, and ginger to a medium saucepan. Bring the mixture just to a boil over medium-high heat.
- Immediately remove the pan from the heat, cover with a lid, and let it steep off the burner for 10 to 15 minutes.
- Pour the tea through a fine-mesh strainer into a heat-safe pitcher (for iced tea) or directly into mugs (for hot tea). Discard the used flowers, orange, and ginger.
- Stir in your maple syrup while the tea is warm so it dissolves instantly. Enjoy hot, or let the pitcher cool before refrigerating to serve over ice later.
Video
Notes
- Look for whole, dried flor de Jamaica in the international aisle or at Mexican markets for the best color and flavor. If using store-bought hibiscus tea bags, swap the 4 tablespoons of loose flowers for 4 tea bags.
- Keep strained tea in a sealed glass container in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Nutrition
Julie Gaeta is a plant-based recipe creator, certified Integrative Nutrition Health Coach, and mom of nine who's been plant-based for over 20 years. She's cooked approximately 4,382 pots of beans and can't vacation without her juicer and pasta pot. Her work has been featured in HuffPost, Yahoo, YourTango, and other major outlets. She helps others simplify wellness and feel good again through her blog, coaching, and weekly newsletter.
Julie Gaeta says
Easily one of my favorite teas. I keep a pitcher of this in the fridge most weeks, and it never disappoints—refreshing iced in the summer and cozy warm in cooler weather.