Vanilla Tea: Recipe & Benefits

by John Staughton (BASc, BFA) last updated -

Drinking vanilla tea is an excellent way to relax your body and mind, and enjoy a number of other health benefits as well.

What is Vanilla Tea?

Vanilla tea, or vanilla chai tea, is an herbal tea brewed with vanilla beans or vanilla extract, along with black, white or orange pekoe teas, among others. Depending on your method of brewing this tea, you may have a higher sugar content in the sweet beverage, but the best way to brew the tea is with fresh vanilla beans. Synthetic vanilla flavorings won’t deliver the same nutritional benefits. Vanilla tea can be served either hot or cold and is consumed around the world, particularly as a stress-relieving brew. [1]

Benefits

There are quite a few benefits to vanilla tea, including its ability to kickstart the metabolism and improve gastrointestinal health, due to its active ingredient vanillin, as well as other antioxidants, in both the tea and the vanilla beans. This tea naturally lowers stress hormone levels and improves mood while calming the nervous system and aiding in healthy sleep. [2]

Vanilla tea in a teacup with macaroons and flowers on a pink background

Vanilla tea Photo Credit: Shutterstock

Side Effects

  • The side effects of drinking vanilla chai tea include side effects from consuming caffeine, such as tiredness, fatigue, and irritability, at least once the caffeine has worn off. [3]
  • Pregnant women are not advised to consume this tea, as caffeine is not recommended for pregnant or nursing mothers.
  • Some people are allergic to vanilla and its byproducts, but this allergy isn’t overly common.

How to Make Vanilla Tea

If you want to make vanilla tea, you can brew it with actual vanilla beans or by adding a few drops of vanilla extract into a normal cup of tea. This recipe is for the former, more natural approach to brewing a vanilla tea. [4]

    Tea is poured from a teapot into a cup

    Aromatic Vanilla Tea Recipe

    The soothing vanilla tea has an unexpected, but welcome side-benefit. It can suffuse your home with its delicious heady aroma.  
    5 from 1 vote
    Print Pin Rate
    Course: Tea
    Cuisine: American
    Keyword: Vanilla Tea
    Appliance: Kettle, Pot
    Prep Time: 2 minutes
    Cook Time: 10 minutes
    Steeping Time: 4 minutes
    Total Time: 12 minutes
    Servings: 4 Cups
    Author: Paromita Datta

    Ingredients

    • 1 vanilla bean
    • 4 1/4 cups water
    • 3-4 teabags black, green, white or orange pekoe
    • 4 tsp sugar

    Instructions

    • Heat up 1/4 cup of water and the sugar on the stove in a saucepan. 
    • Slice 1 vanilla bean in half and scoop out the seeds, adding them to the water and sugar.
    • Add the bean shell as well and allow the mixture to heat for 5-10 minutes until the sugar is dissolved.
    • In a separate saucepan, bring 4 cups of water to a boil.
    • Add the tea bags of your choice to the water and allow them to steep for 3-4 minutes.
    • Remove the vanilla bean from the sugar mixture and add to the tea.
    • Remove the tea bags and stir the mixture thoroughly before serving.
    • Now, you can sit back and enjoy your cup of vanilla tea!
      Tea is poured from a teapot into a cup

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    If you have tried this recipe, we would love your feedback in the comments section below. And while we can’t taste it, we would love to see how it turned out! You can connect with us on Facebook or Instagram and tag your picture with #organicfactsrecipes. [5] [6]

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    About the Author

    John Staughton is a traveling writer, editor, publisher and photographer with English and Integrative Biology degrees from the University of Illinois in Champaign-Urbana (USA). He co-founded the literary journal, Sheriff Nottingham, and now serves as the Content Director for Stain’d Arts, a non-profit based in Denver, Colorado. On a perpetual journey towards the idea of home, he uses words to educate, inspire, uplift and evolve.

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