Iced rooibos tea is a refreshing summer drink without caffeine or added sugar. This easy, healthy recipe is thirst-quenching and naturally sweetened with fresh orange and cinnamon. It's quick to make and perfect for keeping in the fridge for hot summer days.
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What you'll love about the recipe
- Rooibos (or redbush) tea is naturally caffeine-free so you can drink it at any time of day, and it's ideal for children
- Rooibos is low in tannins, which can make other teas taste bitter and interfere with mineral absorption. It is ideal for drinking cold. You can keep a jug of iced tea in the fridge and top it up throughout the day, and it will still taste delicious
- No added sugar. Unlike many soft drinks, this iced rooibos tea recipe is designed to be drunk unsweetened. Rooibos has a full-bodied, rich, slightly sweet flavour which works very well as a refreshing summer drink
- It's healthy. Rooibos tea, made from a South African shrub called Aspalathus linearis, is rich in antioxidants and polyphenols. Orange and cinnamon are also a natural source of antioxidants
- Quick and easy to make, iced red tea has just 3 ingredients. It's perfect for entertaining, served in a big pitcher
Ingredients
Rooibos tea. I use tea bags to make iced rooibos tea as it won't need straining, but you can use loose leaf tea if you prefer. One teaspoon of loose leaf tea is the equivalent of one tea bag.
Adding a piece of fresh orange to homemade rooibos iced tea naturally sweetens it slightly, and I love the flavour of orange and rooibos together.
Cinnamon. A cinnamon stick is ideal for this recipe. Half a cinnamon stick is sufficient; you can reuse it several times. If you don't like cinnamon, you could also use other warming spices such as cloves, cardamom, ginger or star anise.
How to make iced rooibos tea
All you'll need to prepare your perfect iced rooibos tea is a heat-proof jug and some boiling water.
Pour the boiling water over the tea bags and add the slice of orange and cinnamon stick. Leave the tea bags in the liquid until you are ready to serve. Unlike other teas, I find that rooibos tea does not go bitter even if you brew it for a long period of time.
Leave to cool. If you place it in the fridge, it'll reach room temperature in about an hour.
Serve over ice with an extra slice of orange.
Cold Brew Method Iced Rooibos
Alternatively, you can cold brew rooibos tea to drink chilled. Cold brew rooibos has a slightly smoother, sweeter flavour than hot-brewed, although it's quite a subtle difference.
You'll need to use twice the number of teabags or loose leaf tea and cinnamon when cold brewing to get a good depth of flavour.
Leave the tea to infuse in the fridge for about 8 hours, or overnight.
Strain out the teabags and cinnamon when you are ready to drink and add a fresh slice of orange and ice.
Flavour variations
If you want to add extra sweetness to your redbush tea drink, try a spoonful of honey or maple syrup. You could also add some vanilla extract for a slightly sweeter flavour.
I've added orange to this caffeine-free iced tea recipe, but you could also use other fruits
- A small handful of raspberries or strawberries add a beautiful colour and a sweet, summery berry flavour
- This recipe is a great way to make a healthier sugar-free peach iced tea. Thinly slice half a juicy ripe peach and add to the mix (you can add the peaches to a cold-brewed tea as well as hot)
- A few slices of apple also complement iced rooibos tea perfectly
You can also add a spring of mint and a slice of lemon in place of the orange if preferred.
For a sparkling iced tea, top up with some sparkling water. Brew the tea (hot or cold) with half the quantity of water in the recipe to make a more concentrated infusion. Then dilute the drink with an equal amount of sparkling water.
Recipe tips
If you are a big rooibos iced tea drinker, you can top the jug up once or twice during the day. Just add some more boiling water and place it back in the fridge. I find it tastes just as nice on the second or third brew. Discard the tea bags at the end of the day.
Double or triple the recipe as needed for entertaining. If you want to make large batch for a party, I think it's easiest to cold brew the tea overnight. It's great for barbecues as both kids and adults enjoy this caffeine-free, sugar-free drink.
Leftover tea can be stored in the fridge for up to 2 days.
Frequently asked questions
Yes, you can make rooibos tea with cold water (cold brewed). But you'll need to use double the quantity of tea bags and infuse the tea for 8-12 hours.
As rooibos tea is naturally caffeine-free, it can be drunk at any time of the day. It is also low in tannins, which means it won't interfere with the absorption of minerals such as iron and can be safely drunk with meals.
Unlike many other teas, rooibos doesn't contain bitter-tasting tannins. That means that it can be brewed for a longer period of time. I regularly re-steep my rooibos tea bags once or twice, and I do the same when I make iced rooibos tea too.
Other healthy drinks you might like
If you like caffeine-free tea, why not try some of the recipes below? Many of these herbal drinks can be made for free if you are lucky enough to live in the countryside and can go foraging.
Most of these herbal teas can also be served chilled as healthy sugar-free iced teas, and you might also like this refined sugar-free lemonade recipe.
You might also like to try this healthy iced coffee recipe. It works well with decaf coffee if that's what you prefer.
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Recipe
Iced Rooibos Tea (Sugar-Free, Caffeine-Free)
Ingredients
- 2 rooibos tea bags
- ½ cinnamon stick
- ¼ orange
Instructions
Hot Brew Method
- Place the tea bags, orange and cinnamon stick in a heat proof jug and cover with 500ml boiling water.2 rooibos tea bags, ½ cinnamon stick, ¼ orange
- Leave to cool. This will take about an hour in the fridge.
- Serve over ice with a slice of orange.
Cold Brew Method
- Use twice the number of teabags or loose leaf tea and cinnamon when cold brewing to get a good depth of flavour.
- Leave the tea to infuse in the fridge for about 8 hours, or overnight.
- Strain out the teabags and cinnamon when you are ready to drink and add a fresh slice of orange and ice.
Notes
- If you want to use loose-leaf redbush tea, replace each tea bag with one teaspoon of loose tea. Strain out the tea before serving.
- If you want your tea to be sweeter, add a teaspoon of honey or maple syrup.
- The jug of iced tea can be topped up with boiling water once or twice. Discard the tea bags at the end of the day.
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