Shaken Basil Iced Tea Recipe

During the summer I’m totally into Shaken Basil Iced Tea.  

Iced Tea infused with basil is super refreshing with straight from the garden flavor.

Shaken in a cocktail shaker, then served over ice, this is the perfect summer beverage and delicious herbal spin on my favorite black tea.

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Basil Iced Tea is refreshing

I use fresh herbs all year long but especially during the summer months.

Herbs are such a great way to add flavor to everything from drinks to cocktails to dinner recipes.

But you can’t always have a Strawberry Basil Margarita. So for those times, I drink this delicious Basil Iced Tea.

Can you use basil in iced tea?

Yes! You can use basil in anything you want (pretty much). And there are a variety of ways you can get the flavor to infuse your tea.

Since I don’t like sweet drinks, I prefer to just muddle and shake up basil in my tea.

But you could also create a flavored simple syrup to extract the flavor too. But it will make this into a sweet tea. Ew.

How to make basil iced tea

It’s hardly even a recipe. It’s so easy. Of course, I took all the short cuts possible. Because that’s just who I am as a person.

Scroll to the end of the post for a printable recipe card with detailed directions and measurements.

Ingredients

• Black tea
• fresh basil leaves

What kind of tea should I use

I prefer to use black tea for this recipe. And I use one that is store-bought. But you can use your favorite. You can make the iced tea in a Keurig or you can use green tea.

It’s totally up to you.

To me, black tea has the best, almost bitter flavor that I find so refreshing on a warm day.

And I’ve had my share of store-bought teas and Tejava is delish. It seems like it has more caffeine than I remember as my heart was racing after I drank this.

So keep that in mind if you are sensitive to caffeine.

Instructions

I really think that using a cocktail shaker for this non-alcoholic drink is the best.

Not only does shaking with ice create an extra, refreshing finished drink, but the strainer helps to keep out the really big basil chunks.

As you will see from the images below, some basil does sneak through, but I don’t mind it. You could always use a strainer with smaller holes if you don’t want large pieces.

So in a cocktail shaker, add about 5 leaves of fresh basil along with a splash of tea.

Muddle the leaves. This bruises the leaves and helps to release the oils and in turn the flavor.

Having that little bit of tea in there just helps to grab those oils.

Also, for the longest time I didn’t have a legit muddler. Just use the back of an ice cream scooper or back of a spoon if you need to.

Add the rest of the iced tea and then a handful of ice to the shaker. Shake well.

Adding the ice at the very end helps to keep it from melting and diluting the drink as fast.

It also turns out extra tasty if you start with cold tea to begin with.

Strain the basil infused iced tea into a tall glass with fresh ice.

Garnish with more fresh basil.

You can also add a squeeze of fresh lime or lemon if you like a little citrus with your tea. (I totally do – lime is the greatest of all time!)

Top tips

This is a perfect drink to serve guests at a party or summer barbecue and can easily be made ahead of time.

It can also be made in a larger batch.

Just leave the ice out so it doesn’t dilute it. And be sure to increase the amounts of basil based on the amount of tea you have.

The longer the tea sits with the basil, the more that gorgeous herbal flavor will infuse it.

To keep it from diluting, you can also freeze iced tea into ice cubes. It will help to keep the tea cold and is just tea as they melt!

Your going to love this!

Did I mention you can also use this to make Iced Tea Sangria? And of course you can make Spiked Tea with vodka.

Supplies to make this recipe

More refreshing drinks to make.

• Bitters and Soda is my go-to for when I feel like a cocktail but don’t want all the alcohol.
• You’ll love these fruity, non-alcoholic mimosas!
• Or you can check out my list of non-alcoholic drink recipes that I put together for New Year’s Eve but that is great any time of year!

Printable recipe

Pin to save this basil iced tea recipe for later

This Basil Iced Tea really did turn out so good! It’s amazingly refreshing, had a lovely basil flavor. It also made me feel a little fancy.