Infusion is the simplest way to prepare Chinese herbal tea, and the method used for most flowers, fruits, leaves, and some seeds. The process stays the same across all of these ingredients. Only the infusion time changes, depending on how sturdy the herb is. If you’re not sure whether your herb calls for an infusion or a decoction, our guide on Infusion vs. Decoction: What’s the Difference? explains how to tell the two apart.
Before You Start: What You Need
1. The Equipment
You don’t need anything specialized to make an infusion. A teapot, an infuser, or even a tall mug and a strainer all work well. If you do use a pot at any point, such as to heat your water, stick to stainless steel, ceramic, glass, or earthenware. Avoid aluminum, iron, copper, or bronze, since these can react with the herbs and affect both taste and quality.
2. The Water
Spring or filtered water is recommended. Products present in tap water can cancel out or deteriorate the active compounds in the plants. Mineral water isn’t a good substitute either. Its high magnesium content, along with substances like fluoride and trace elements, can interfere with and alter the properties of the herbs in your infusion.
3. Water Temperature
Most infusions call for water just off the boil, around 195 to 205°F (90 to 96°C), rather than fully boiling water straight off the heat. Delicate flowers and leaves can be scalded by water that’s too hot, which flattens the aroma and flavor instead of bringing it out. Hardier ingredients, like some seeds or thicker leaves, tolerate fully boiling water better.
How to Infuse
The infusion method stays the same whether you’re working with flowers, fruits, leaves, or seeds. Only the infusion time changes: the harder the herb, the longer it typically needs to steep. The exact infusion time is always listed in the description on that herb’s product page.
Step 1: Heat your water. Heat spring or filtered water until it begins to boil.
Step 2: Warm your cup or teapot (optional). Pour a small amount of the hot water into a tall mug or teapot to bring it up to temperature, then discard that water. This small step keeps your tea from cooling too quickly once you pour the real infusion.
Step 3: Add your herbs. Place the contents of your herbal tea bag, or your measured loose herbs, into the warmed cup.
Step 4: Pour the water. Pour the hot water over the herbs until it fills about 80-90% of the cup, leaving a little room at the top.
Step 5: Cover and steep. Cover the cup and leave it to infuse. The infusion time is given on each herb’s product page, but as a general range, most flowers and leaves need 5 to 10 minutes, sometimes 15 minutes.
Step 6: Strain and drink. Once the time is up, strain if needed, and drink while warm.
Now that you’ve learned how to prepare them, it’s time to discover our herbal infusions. Take a closer look at each herb and find the one that’s right for you.
Typical Quantities
As a general starting point, use about 1 to 2 teaspoons of dried herb per cup of water. Lighter, airy ingredients like whole flowers may need slightly more to get a good depth of flavor, while denser fruits or seeds often work well with less. If you’re using a pre-measured sachet or tea bag, the quantity has already been calculated for you. For loose herbs, check the specific product page if you want a precise recommended amount rather than estimating by eye.
A Practical Example
Take a chrysanthemum infusion as an example. Heat your water until it just starts to boil, then let it sit for about 30-40 secondes so it’s just off the boil rather than at a full rolling boil. Warm your mug with a splash of the hot water, discard it, and add about 1 to 2 teaspoons of dried chrysanthemum flowers. Pour the hot water over the flowers, filling the cup about 80% full, then cover and let it steep for 5 to 10 minutes. Strain and enjoy. If you like the taste, you can steep the same flowers a second time.
A fruit-based infusion, such as goji berry or a goji and jujube blend, follows the same steps, but tends to hold up well to a slightly longer steep, around 10 to 15 minutes, since the fruit is a bit denser than a flower petal.
Reusing Your Herbs
For most herbal teas, only the first infusion carries the full beneficial effect. That said, you can steep the same herbs a second time if you enjoy the taste, even if the effect is milder. Some herbal teas are an exception to this general rule. When that’s the case, it’s mentioned in the description section on that herb’s page, so it’s worth checking before you throw out a spent batch of herbs.
Loose Herbs vs. Sachets
You’ll generally infuse herbs in one of two formats: loose, or pre-portioned into a sachet.
Loose herbs give you more control. You can adjust the quantity to taste, mix ingredients together, and see exactly what you’re steeping. They do ask a bit more of you in terms of preparation, since you’re measuring and straining yourself.
Sachets remove that extra step entirely. The quantity is already worked out, so you just steep and go, then discard the bag when you’re done. This is often the easier starting point if you’re new to a particular blend, since it takes the guesswork out while you figure out whether you like the taste and effect.
Neither format changes the underlying method. Water temperature, steeping time, and quantity per cup stay the same either way, since a sachet is really just a pre-measured amount of loose herb.
A Note on Steeping Vessels
A teapot with a built-in infuser basket is convenient if you plan to drink more than one cup, since you can lift the basket out once the tea has steeped rather than straining a full pot. A simple mesh infuser dropped into a mug works just as well for a single serving. If you don’t have either on hand, steeping the herbs loose in a mug and straining them out with a fine sieve when you’re done is a perfectly good alternative. What matters most is the material of whatever touches the hot water and herbs, not the exact shape of the vessel.
Common Mistakes
- Using fully boiling water on delicate flowers. This scalds the petals and leaves the tea tasting flat instead of fragrant. Let boiling water rest for about a minute before pouring it over flowers and other delicate ingredients.
- Using unfiltered tap water. This can cancel out or weaken the active compounds in the herbs. Spring or filtered water gives a cleaner result.
- Skipping the warming step. Pouring hot water into a cold mug or teapot cools the water faster than expected, which can leave your infusion slightly weaker than intended.
- Over-steeping. Leaving herbs in the water well past the recommended time doesn’t make the tea more potent. It often just makes it more bitter. Stick to the time listed on the herb’s page.
- Treating every herb the same way. A quick 5-minute steep that works for chrysanthemum won’t fully draw out a denser seed or fruit. Check the specific infusion time for what you’re brewing.
- Assuming every herb can be re-steeped for full effect. Most of the benefit comes through in the first infusion. A second steep is fine for flavor, but don’t assume it carries the same strength unless the herb’s page says otherwise.
Where to Go Next
If you’re just starting out with Chinese herbal tea, our Beginner’s Guide to Chinese Herbal Tea covers everything from your first cup onward. For roots, bark, and other tougher ingredients that need simmering instead of steeping, see our companion guide, How to Make a Decoction. And if you want the full picture of why some herbs are infused while others are decocted, Infusion vs. Decoction: What’s the Difference? covers that comparison in detail.