Ready in less than 30 minutes, this butterfly pea tea lemonade is refreshingly sweet, tangy and fragrant. Not only is it easy to make, but it also looks inviting, making it perfect as an afternoon treat or drink. Say goodbye to store-bought lemonade now and use this recipe which comes with several health benefits, ranging from helping to reduce stress and anxiety to improving your digestion and protecting you against free radicals!
Why This Recipe Works
If you've tried my, butterfly pea milk, Thai milk tea, Thai pink milk and fresh peach lemonade, you are so going to love this unicorn drink! This is another popular drink in Thailand. We call it nam anchan manao น้ำอัญชันมะนาว in Thai, which translates to butterfly pea limeade. But I'm using lemons in this recipe though.
This drink offers a really nice lemon fragrance and the perfect balance of sweet and sour flavors. In other words, it's not too sour or not too sweet. Of course, there's a bit of sugar in it but not in an unhealthy amount. That's why I say it's better than store-bought lemonade, which is often very sweet.
As you can tell by the name, this drink contains both butterfly pea tea and lemon juice. These ingredients have a lot of health benefits. They help you with your immune system, your brain, your skin, your hair, and even your digestion. Other than that, it's really easy to make and ready in less than 30 minutes.
And let me just ask you this question - doesn't this drink look so pretty and inviting it makes you want to relax and enjoy it? You could have a happy meal with this drink and my chicken tomato cucumber salad or Thai green beef curry and rice!
Ingredients
Here is a visual overview of the ingredients in the recipe. Scroll down to the recipe at the bottom for quantities.
Ingredient Notes
1. Butterfly Pea Flowers: If you're lucky enough to be able to grow butterfly pea flowers where you live, you can use the fresh flowers. But dried butterfly pea flowers work just as well and they are easy to find in Asian grocery stores and online. I use fresh and dried interchangeably, depending on what I have.
2. Lemon Juice: As the name anchan manao suggests, Thai people usually make this drink with lime juice since limes are a basic ingredient in Thao households and much, much cheaper than lemons in Thailand. I use lemons because we grow them at home (if you enjoy gardening, read my post about growing lemons in Bangkok, Thailand here).
If you use lime juice, the drink will still be just as tasty but with a tiny difference in terms of aroma. In my opinion, both lemon juice and lime juice work really well. I don't think one is better than the other. It's just a matter of what you can find. Oh, and don't worry, the acidity in the lime juice will turn your tea purple too!
3. Soda Water or Sparkling Water: Butterfly pea lemonade with soda water is just so refreshing and perfect for any summer day or party. The soda water makes this drink a bit more fun and gives it pretty looks because with layers of colors. However, if you do not like soda water, you can just use drinking water.
Tips
1. It's best to use warm water to make butterfly pea flower tea or blue tea because it helps extract the color from the flowers better than room temperature water.
2. When mixing the butterfly pea tea with sugar and lemon juice, you can gradually add both and keep tasting and adjusting until you get the taste that is to your liking.
3. If you are preparing this drink for a party, you can make the tea and lemonade mixture ahead of time and just add the soda water when ready to drink or serve. You can store any leftover lemonade in a bottle with a lid and put it in the refrigerator where it will keep for the next few days.
Related Recipes
📖 Recipe
Butterfly Pea Tea Lemonade Recipe
Equipment
- 1 strainer
Ingredients
- 3 cups water warm
- ⅓ cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup dried butterfly pea flowers or fresh
- ⅓ cup lemon juice
- 3 cups ice
- 3 cups soda water
- lemon and rosemary for garnishes optional
Instructions
- Pour the water into a cup. Add the butterfly pea flowers and stir or soak for a few minutes. If the color isn't strong enough, add more flowers.
- Strain the butterfly pea tea with a mesh strainer.
- Add the sugar to the butterfly tea and use a spoon to stir until fully dissolved.
- Mix the lemon juice with the sweetened butterfly pea tea.
- Fill glasses with ice.
- Pour the butterfly pea lemonade over the ice, up to about half of each glass.
- Fill the rest of each glass with soda water and enjoy right away.
Video
Notes
- It's best to use warm water to make butterfly pea flower tea or blue tea because it helps extract the color from the flowers better than room temperature water.
- When mixing the butterfly pea tea with sugar and lemon juice, you can gradually add both and keep tasting and adjusting until you get the taste that is to your liking.
- If you are preparing this drink for a party, you can make the tea and lemonade mixture ahead of time and just add the soda water when ready to drink or serve. You can store any leftover lemonade in a bottle with a lid and put it in the refrigerator where it will keep for the next few days.