Herbalism 101: The Wonders of Herbal Tea

Herbal tea is the perfect beverage for those days when you have a good book to read on a rainy day or for when you are feeling under the weather. The herbs in these teas, however, have benefits that go beyond just creating a cozy environment or having a comforting beverage.

Hi! My name is Kristen, and I am an herbalist, bodyworker, and wellness educator, and I will be delving into the world of herbal tea, its medicinal benefits, and how you can incorporate it into your daily life.

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Why Herbal Tea?

Herbs are one of my favorite ways to help people make changes to their long term wellness because herbalism is the people’s medicine. Herbalism is and should be accessible to everyone!

Herbs have been a part of wellness care for as long as humans have been here on the earth, and there are significant health benefits that come from plant phytochemicals. Incorporating herbs into your daily wellness routine is a passive intervention that can add up over time; the small steps that you take now through herbal medicine will produce long-term and long lasting benefits for your health down the road. 

Herbalism is also is very accessible, customizable, and sustainable, and can be a really empowering way for people to take care of their bodies. Countless herbs can be found at any grocery store and can be purchased with government assistance programs like food stamps and EBT. You can also grow your own herbs or purchase herbal blends and support a small business.

My wellness apothecary has a wide variety of affordable herbal teas and tinctures that specifically target different ailments and ones that promote overall wellness. You will not only be supporting your overall health and wellness, but you will also be supporting a small business and my meaningful wellness work!

Most people are realizing that there is a significant difference between medical care and wellness care and plant medicine is a valuable way to extend the benefits of medical care into the wellness care realm. I believe that there is benefit to both medical care and wellness care, and I aim to bridge the gap between the two through education and the products that I sell in my apothecary.

In this Herbalism 101 series, we are breaking down the skills and knowledge as well as the absolute basics of what you need to know to begin to effectively and safely bring herbal medicine into your life. 

To do so, all you need to do is to begin with a cup of herbal tea!

Herbal Tea Vs. Tea

Before I go further, I want to make a distinction that the term tea technically refers to a drink made from a specific plant: Camellia Sinensis. 

Camellia sinensis has a wide variety of health benefits, but it is usually brewed for pleasure rather than medicine, but I will cover all of that in a video where we break down the medicine of the tea plant if you want to know more. Stay tuned to my YouTube channel for this video and check out my other videos on herbalism and wellness care! 

Herbal teas, on the other hand, are not made from the tea plant but are water extractions made from various herbs, flowers, and plant parts, and these are usually more medicinal in nature. You can brew herbal teas to experience various its various benefits that include, relaxation, digestion, detox, and countless other

Water extractions occur when you extract plant compounds and phytochemicals with water, and there are two main methods which result in a cup of medicinal herbal tea— infusion and decoction.

Infusion Method

Infusion is the process of steeping plant material, such as leaves, flowers, and soft stems, in hot water to extract their medicinal properties. This method is used for delicate plant parts that release their beneficial properties easily with gentle heat. It is commonly used for making herbal teas from aerial parts of plants like chamomile, mint, lavender, and even the tea plant!

So, how do you make an herbal infusion? Below are the steps to making a delicious herbal tea with benefits that will promote overall wellness.

1. Place your dried or herbs in a jar. A good measurement is about 1-2 teaspoons of tea per cup of water. I usually make my tea in a mason jar or French press. 

2. Cover your herbs in boiling water and let it steep for a minimum of 20 minutes, up to 60. 

3. After you let it steep for between 20 to 60 minutes, strain your infusion.

4. This is an optional step: add sweetener and milk of choice if you want; again, we are going for compliance!

I prefer making my tea fresh everyday as part of a wellness routine and ritual, but you can make larger batches and store it in the fridge for 1-3 days.

A great deal of resources and herbal tea that come from boxes will suggest that you brew it for 5-10 minutes.To make significant changes in your physiology and wellness, however, you actually want a stronger medicine that is steeped for at least 20 minutes.

I will often let my herbal tea sit on the counter while I am seeing clients in the office and will pour from it throughout the day, or I will brew it the night before or in the morning and strain it into a jar that I can carry with me throughout the day.

The overnight method will depend on what herbs you are brewing, how they taste, and how you like the herbs, so feel free to play around with your brew time!

Remember that you want to make a cup of tea you are going to enjoy drinking, so if it is too strong, you can adjust a few of the variables to make it more palatable for you. Remember that herbs will not work if you do not take them!

For general wellness, you will want to drink 2-4 cups (or one large mason jar) of herbal tea a day. This is what we call our daily tonic tea. If you want to know which herbs would be good to start with to increase general wellness and get started on the herbal journey, be sure to watch this video on foundational nourishing herbs!

Decoction Method

Another method of making herbal tea is the decoction method. 

Decocting herbs involves boiling tougher parts of the plant like the roots, barks, and hard seeds. 

You have to decoct these parts of the plant because these plant materials require prolonged boiling to extract their medicinal properties effectively. These parts of the plant often contain tougher cell walls or denser structures that require more heat and time to break down and release their beneficial compounds.

Infusion, on the other hand, is suitable for more delicate plant parts, such as leaves, flowers, and softer stems, which can release their medicinal properties with just hot water steeping over them.

Because decoction is more labor intensive than infusing herbs, I usually prefer to work with herbal powders or tinctures if I need to work with these types of herbs because I am kind of a lazy herbalist. However, it is actually pretty easy to make an herbal decoction.

So, how do you make an herbal decoction? Below are some steps to crafting a nutrient-dense, tasty herbal decoction. Much like infusions, you will add about 1-2 teaspoons per cup of water to a pot.

1. Bring your water to a boil over medium-high heat.

2. Once the water reaches a rolling boil, reduce the heat to low and let the herb(s) simmer in the water for about 15-30 minutes. The simmering time may vary depending on the herb(s) and desired strength of the decoction.

3. Keep the pot covered with a lid during the simmering process to prevent the evaporation of the medicinal properties.

4. After simmering, turn off the heat and let the decoction cool for a few minutes.

5. Strain the decoction into a cup or mug or jar, using a fine-mesh strainer or a cheesecloth to remove the plant material.

Just like with infusions, you can sweeten your decoction with your sweetener of choice or add your milk of choice—again, whatever is going to allow you to drink it regularly! 

Similar to infusion, you can make larger batches of decoction and store it in the fridge for 1-3 days. You can also make really strong decoctions and then freeze and thaw them later, using the ice cubes like a medicinal concentrate. This is my preferred method if I know I am going to need a lot of decocted herbs for a period of time but do not want to make a new decoction every day. 

Remember that the most important part of making tea is to make something that you can drink on a regular basis, so do whatever you need to do to make this available to you depending on your schedule and the context of your life!

To Sum It All Up

There is so much room to customize your relationship to herbs and plant medicine! We all have different schedules, needs, and restrictions that allow for an incredible array of ways to practice herbal medicine in a way that benefits everyone.

It is important to note that the amount of herbs, brewing time, and water-to-herb ratio can vary depending on the herbs you are using and the desired strength of the tea. Feel free to adjust these variables to suit your personal taste and preferences!

Herbs do not work if you do not take them, and they can make a big impact on your short and long term wellness. 

I really love hearing from you, so let me know if you try out any of these methods or if you learned anything new or that surprised you, because reflecting and being witnessed as you learn by your community is just really good medicine!

Listen to this post on the Herbs + Ease Podcast for a more detailed educational experience!

Kristen Prosen