Search

7 Most Popular Teas In The Middle East That You Must Try

Everyone loves tea in the Middle East, and, as far as I’m concerned, there’s no right way to make your perfect cup of tea. Whether you love it strong or prefer it weak, it’s your tea or more exactly your comfort and well-being in a cup. 

Serve it in a traditional cup, bone china cup, or a mug, it doesn’t really matter. What matters is that with just a few ingredients, you’re up for a life-changing experience. 

Let me introduce you now to the most popular aromatic and herbal teas in the Middle East that you can easily make at home:

1. Mint Tea 

Girl pouring mint tea from a tea pot

Arab people have enjoyed mint tea for centuries. It’s a herbal tea easily made by infusing mint leaves in hot water. Also, it’s great for calming an upset stomach. If you love mint, you’ll love the aroma and flavour of this tea. 

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups of water
  • 15 fresh mint leaves with stalks

Directions:

  1. Fill a teapot with water and fresh mint leaves.
  2. Bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for approximately 5 minutes to release the exquisite flavour of the mint.
  3. Once the water changes colour into a pale green/yellow, it’s ready for you to enjoy. The duration depends entirely on how strong you wish your tea to be.
  4. Remove the leaves from the liquid.
  5. Sweeten with honey or sugar if desired.
  6. Place a mint leaf into each cup to garnish.

2. Cinnamon Tea

cinnamon tea in a traditional Arabic glass with no handles

Cinnamon tea has always been very popular in the Middle East. It’s simply delicious and easy to prepare and offers a wide range of health benefits. Traditionally, cinnamon is infused in black tea or English breakfast tea.

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups of water
  • 2 tea bags (black tea) or 2 teaspoons of loose black tea
  • 2 cinnamon sticks
  • sugar or honey to sweeten
  • a handful of roughly chopped walnuts 

Directions:

  1. Fill a teapot with water, add tea bags and cinnamon sticks.
  2. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for 3-5 minutes. The duration depends entirely on how strong you wish your tea to be.
  3. Remove the tea bags and the cinnamon sticks.
  4. Serve it hot.
  5. Sweeten with honey or sugar if desired.
  6. Top with chopped walnuts.

3. Z-hourat Tea

Zhoorat-a blend of aromatic herbs and rose petals.

Z-hourat is a popular herbal tea enjoyed mostly in Lebanon and Syria and made from a blend of aromatic herbs and rose petals. This tea is the perfect combination of rich herbs, fragrant smells and goodness. Z-hourat blends are readily available to buy throughout the Middle East. You can also buy them here.  

Here’s what you need to recreate my homemade blend:

  • Rose petals (dried)
  • Lavender flowers (dried)
  • Hibiscus flowers (dried)
  • Chamomile flowers (dried)
  • Thyme leaves (dried)
  • Sage leaves (dried)
  • Mint leaves (dried)
  • Balm mint leaves (dried)

Combine equal amounts of the above-listed ingredients and store them in an airtight container. This blend will last up to 6 months.

Ingredients:

  • 2 tablespoons of z-hourat blend
  • 2 cups of boiling water

Directions:

  1. Combine z-hourat tea and water and then bring it to a boil. 
  2. Remove from heat and allow to infuse for 5 – 10 minutes. The duration depends entirely on how strong you wish your tea to be.
  3. Strain the flowers and herbs from the liquid.
  4. Sweeten with honey or sugar if desired.

4. Lemon Verbena Tea 

Verbena herbal tea in a tea pot

If you love herbal teas, you’ll enjoy the fragrant lemon verbena tea. The flavour is zingy, lemony, and absolutely delicious. The lemon verbena plant is a woody shrub with light green leaves and small white or lilac flowers and has many health benefits including its immunity-boosting and anti-inflammatory properties. 

My family purely drink it because it has a delicious lemony flavour. You can also add lemon verbena leaves to your black tea. 

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups of water
  • 8 fresh lemon verbena leaves 
  • 1 black/English breakfast tea bag (optional)

Directions:

  1. Fill a teapot with water, fresh lemon verbena leaves and a teabag.
  2. Boil for approximately 5 – 7 minutes. The duration depends entirely on how strong you wish your tea to be.
  3. Remove the leaves and the teabag from the liquid.
  4. Serve it hot.
  5. Sweeten with honey or sugar if desired.

5. Lemongrass Tea

Green tea

Lemongrass tea is, in my opinion, usually best as a herbal tea with no black tea added to it. Only the outer part of the lemongrass is used for the tea. Wash and cut it into 8-10 cm pieces using a pair of scissors. If you’ve never tried lemongrass tea, try this simple recipe at home:

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups of water
  • 1 cup lemongrass (fresh, washed, and cut)

Directions:

  1. Fill a teapot with water and lemongrass.
  2. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat and boil for a further 5 minutes. The duration depends entirely on how strong you wish your tea to be.
  3. Strain the stalks from the liquid.
  4. Serve it hot.
  5. Sweeten with honey or sugar if desired.

6. Sage Tea

Fresh sage leaves added to black tea

Sage is often added to black tea but you can easily keep it herbal. It’s naturally caffeine-free so you can enjoy it any time of the day. Sage tea belongs to the mint family, and therefore, this plant infused in hot water boasts refreshing, delicate, and earthy flavours.

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups of hot water
  • 2 tea bags or 2 teaspoons of loose black tea
  • 8 fresh sage leaves
  • 2 lemon peels

Directions:

  1. In a teapot, pour hot water over the sage leaves, tea and lemon peel mix.
  2. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer for approximately 10 minutes. The duration depends entirely on how strong you wish your tea to be.
  3. Remove the tea bags, lemon peel, and sage leaves from the liquid.
  4. Serve it hot.
  5. Sweeten with honey or sugar if desired.

7. Marjoram Tea

Marjoram tea in a pot and glasses

Marjoram tea is quite an acquired taste. It has a soft and sweet but slightly bitter flavour. It’s unique as a tea so you’ll either love it or hate it from the first sip.

Also, marjoram tea is full of minerals and vitamins that will keep your body healthy and safe from illness.

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups of boiling water
  • 8 fresh marjoram leaves

Directions:

  1. In a teapot, pour hot water over the marjoram leaves.
  2. Cover and let it infuse for approximately 5-10 minutes. The duration depends entirely on how strong you wish your tea to be.
  3. Remove the leaves from the tea.
  4. Serve it hot.
  5. Sweeten with honey or sugar if desired.

All the above teas can be made with dry herbs. Keep in mind that you won’t get the same aroma and flavours as you would from fresh herbs.

For every cup of water, add 1 teaspoon of dried herbs. Combine in a teapot and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer, allowing it to infuse for 5-7 minutes. Strain and enjoy!

Check out these super easy dessert recipes you can enjoy with your cup of tea:

Which tea is your favourite? Let me know in the comments below.

With Love  

 

Share the love!

4 Responses

  1. Thank you for this informative review on these herbal beverages and cinnamon & sage-infused tea.
    Are you on Instagram? I would love to follow you.

    I love your photos and the glass tea is so contemporary and elegant. If you had a moment I would love to know where I might purchase them.

    I am a tea expert but herbal beverages are rather new to me, so thank you again for your lovely article.

    1. Hi, My Instagram handle is @roubasfoodjourney. You can click on it from my website homepage. Please do connect with me. Which teapot were you referring to? perhaps send me a screen shot of it on Instagram. I look forward to connecting with you.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Creating magic and happy memories with food are my gift for you!
xx Rouba

Latest Recipes

Easy Fried Kibbeh Bites

Whip up my Easy Fried Kibbeh Bites for a tangy, crispy snack! Perfect with sumac and labneh, they’re a freezer-friendly delight.

Strawberry Shortbread Tiramisu

Strawberry Shortbread Tiramisu is a dreamy, fruity dessert with layers of strawberries and cream. Perfect for impressing at any occasion!

Recipe Categories

Get your FREE hummus eBook!

Sign up for free access to my full range of content and get a free hummus eBook.
Read to the end... and ask yourself, why?
Look closely at this photo. It may seem like just a building, but if you look closer, you’ll see holes — scars from a bomb that hit our home in 1983 by Isr-ael . But that’s not the story I’m here to tell. I’m here to talk about family, love, and what it means to grow up between two worlds. Scroll through 👉🏽 these photos and videos, and at the end, I hope you’ll ask yourself the same question I do: Why are we seen so differently?

I was born in Australia 🇦🇺 but my father wanted me to grow up in Lebanon 🇱🇧 surrounded by our family, our culture, and our traditions. He believed that we should grow up in the heart of our roots, amongst our people, to learn who we are and where we come from. And while we did, there was always this underlying reality—war, unrest, the world constantly chipping away at the places we call home 🥲

It’s ironic, isn’t it? In the West, there’s often resentment towards migrants and refugees. They ask why we come, but the truth is, we are here because the very countries they live in have been bombing ours for decades. We never wanted to leave our homes; we were forced to. Our families, our homes, and our childhood memories are left behind, often shattered, while we try to rebuild elsewhere❤️

My trip back home only a couple of month ago was wonderful. I spent time with family and created new memories that I’ll always hold dear. Some of the people you see in these photos, though, have already left their homes. Others are now forced to leave as well. And the rest? They wait with anxious hearts, knowing that more bombs will fall, knowing their world will soon be reduced to rubble 💔

I often wonder — why doesn’t the world see us, Arabs, as people who deserve to live in peace? Why is it that when they look at us, they see something different, something “other”? Take a moment to look at these photos and videos. At the end, you’ll see Gus and me, just two normal people, sharing a light moment, having some fun. 

Why is it that the world sees us as anything less than human💔
From Ghassan to Carlos, Miguel, and Agostino—each city, a new name, but the same laughs and love. No matter what he calls himself, he’s still my favourite travel buddy, making every moment unforgettable 🤗After six weeks of adventure, it’s a wrap for our holiday! Swipe through to see some snapshots of our selfies—you’ve followed our journey on my stories,which moment was your favourite? And wait till you see the last video—he’s got a funny way of saying ‘time to go home!’ 😂 haha or shall we say K.I.S.S.👇🏾
Photo dump! 🇱🇧 Loving every moment in Lebanon – the sights, the people, and of course the food! 😍

#holiday #lebanon #foodie #foodblogger