Chrysanthemum tea

Chrysanthemum tea
TypeHerbal tea

Other names
  • Gukhwa-cha
  • júhuā-chá
OriginChina (Song dynasty)

Quick descriptionTea made from dried chrysanthemum

Temperature100 °C (212 °F)
Time2‒3 minutes
Regional names
Chinese name
Chinese菊花茶
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu Pinyinjúhuā chá
Wade–Gileschü2-hua1-ch'a2
Wu
Shanghainese
Romanization
jioq⁴ ho¹ zo³
Yue: Cantonese
Yale Romanizationgūk fā chàh
Jyutpingguk1 faa1 caa4
Southern Min
Hokkien POJkiok-hoe-tê
Vietnamese name
Vietnamesetrà hoa cúc
Thai name
Thaiน้ำเก๊กฮวย
RTGSnam kekhuai
Korean name
Hangul국화차
Hanja菊花茶
Transcriptions
Revised Romanizationgukhwa-cha
McCune–Reischauerkukhwa-ch'a
Malay name
Malayteh krisantimum, teh bunga kekwa[1]
Indonesian name
Indonesianteh krisan (Chi Hua Ching)
Tamil name
Tamilsaamandhi

Chrysanthemum tea is a flower-based infusion beverage made from the chrysanthemum flowers of the species Chrysanthemum morifolium or Chrysanthemum indicum, which are most popular throughout East and Southeast Asia.

First cultivated in China as a herb as early as the 1500 BCE, Chrysanthemum became popularized as a tea during the Song dynasty.[2] In Chinese tradition, once a pot of chrysanthemum tea has been drunk, hot water is typically added again to the flowers in the pot (producing a tea that is slightly less strong); this process is often repeated several times.[3]

To prepare the tea, chrysanthemum flowers (usually dried) are steeped in hot water (usually 90 to 95 degrees Celsius after cooling from a boil) in either a teapot, cup, or glass; often rock sugar or cane sugar is also added. The resulting drink is transparent and ranges from pale to bright yellow in color, with a floral aroma.[4]

  1. ^ "Bunga kekwa penyejuk badan" [Body cooling chrysanthemum flower]. Media Permata (Brunei) (in Malay). 27 February 2017. Archived from the original on 19 April 2021. Retrieved 15 November 2024.
  2. ^ Campbell, Dawn L. (1995). The tea book. Gretna: Pelican Publishing. p. 116. ISBN 978-1-56554-074-3.
  3. ^ "History of the Chrysanthemum". mums.org. National Chrysanthemum Society. Retrieved 6 October 2021.
  4. ^ "The History and Healing Power of Chrysanthemum". the-qi.com. The Qi. Retrieved 6 October 2021.