4 Ingredient Elderberry Tea - Recipes From A Pantry (2024)

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Enjoy a hot cup of Elderberry Tea at the first sign of cold or flu to potentially boost your immune system and speed your recovery process.

You’ll also love Easy Infused Water Recipes, Instant Pot Infused Water and Hot Chocolate Bomb.

Suitable for vegetarian, gluten free, and paleo diets. Post includes Weight Watchers points.

4 Ingredient Elderberry Tea - Recipes From A Pantry (1)

During flu and cold season it becomes even more important to protect yourself with immune-boosters like Elderberry Tea.

Store-bought elderberry tea can be expensive and hard to come by, but it’s easy to make it at home with dried elderberries.

Elderberries are loaded with vitamin A and C, and some studies have shown that you can shorten the length of the flu or cold when you begin an elderberry regimen at the first sign of symptoms.

Keeping dried elderberries in your pantry is a great way to be prepared at the first sign of sniffles and sneezing.Along with easy Infused Water Recipes.

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Table of Contents

What Are Elderberries?

Elderberries are common across North American and Central Europe. The berries are small, dark purple, and grow in clusters. They are commonly foraged for use in jelly, pie, and for making Elderberry tea.

They are used in various over the counter cold and flu treatments (although these treatments tend to have a lot of extra sugar to sweeten them).

Why You’ll ♡ This

  • Inexpensive – You can make your own Elderberry Tea at a fraction of the cost of store-bought syrups.
  • Pantry Staples – Add dried elderberries to your pantry and this is easy to make with staples from your pantry.
  • Immune-boosting – Elderberries are high in vitamins A and C and some studies indicate they may boost your immune system.
4 Ingredient Elderberry Tea - Recipes From A Pantry (3)

Ready to make this tea with Elderberries? Gather your ingredients and I will show you…

Handy Tip: Use Good Kitchen Tools!

For the best tools to help make your recipe even easier and more successful, check out my collection of the Best Kitchen Tools on Amazon.

How To Make Elderberry Tea

Get the complete ingredients list and instructions from the recipe card below.

  1. Boil dried elderberries in water in a saucepan for 20 minutes.
  2. Strain out the berries and add the juice of 1 lemon and the honey.
  3. Pour into mugs and serve.
4 Ingredient Elderberry Tea - Recipes From A Pantry (4)

Expert Tips

  • Use a fine-mesh strainer or a tea ball to hold the dried berries for easy removal.

Delicious Variations

  • Boost your tea – Add ¼ teaspoon of cinnamon and ½ tsp of turmeric for even more potential immune-boosting power.
  • Ginger – steep a few slices of fresh ginger with the dried berries.
  • Make it vegan – use maple syrup instead of honey.
  • Chill it – and add ice for a delicious iced tea variation.

Storage

Elderberry Tea can be made and stored in the fridge for up to a week. Serve it iced or reheat it on the stove or in a microwave-safe mug.

4 Ingredient Elderberry Tea - Recipes From A Pantry (5)

FAQs

Can I Forage Elderberries?

Elderberries are found all over the United States and Europe. Never forage for any berries without someone who is well trained in identifying plants.

How Do I Store Dried Elderberries?

Dried elderberries can be stored in a cool, dark pantry for several months. If you plan to keep them longer, transfer them to a freezer-safe container, and you can store them in the freezer indefinitely.

Does Elderberry Tea Have Caffeine?

No, this version is caffeine free.

More Recipes You May Like

  • Easy Infused Water Recipes.
  • Instant Pot Infused Water.
  • Instant Pot Hot Chocolate.
  • Hot Chocolate Bomb.
  • Crockpot Hot Chocolate.

Tools Needed

Weight Watchers Points

There is 1 Blue Plan SmartPoint in one serving of this.

4 Ingredient Elderberry Tea - Recipes From A Pantry (6)

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Print Recipe

4.89 from 9 votes

4 Ingredient Elderberry Tea

Boost your immunity with this delicious homemade elderberry tea.

Prep Time5 minutes mins

Cook Time20 minutes mins

Course: Drinks

Cuisine: American, Western

Diet: Gluten Free

Servings: 4

Calories: 53kcal

Author: Bintu Hardy

Ingredients

  • 6 cups (1.40 L) water
  • 2 tablespoons dried elderberries
  • 2 tablespoons honey
  • 2 lemons

Instructions

  • Pour water into a heavy saucepan.

  • Add dried elderberries and boil for 20 minutes.

  • Strain to remove berries and stir in honey and the juice from one lemon.

  • Garnish with lemon slices and serve.

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Notes

  • Use a fine-mesh strainer or a tea ball to hold the dried berries for easy removal.
  • There is 1 Blue Plan SmartPoint in a serving of this.

Nutrition

Calories: 53kcal | Carbohydrates: 15g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 1g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 20mg | Potassium: 95mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 10g | Vitamin A: 44IU | Vitamin C: 31mg | Calcium: 27mg | Iron: 1mg

4 Ingredient Elderberry Tea - Recipes From A Pantry (2024)

FAQs

4 Ingredient Elderberry Tea - Recipes From A Pantry? ›

As a result, in spite of the toxicity of raw, unripe elderberries, properly prepared elderberry tea is not thought to have any significant health risks.

Is it safe to make tea from dried elderberries? ›

As a result, in spite of the toxicity of raw, unripe elderberries, properly prepared elderberry tea is not thought to have any significant health risks.

How long to cook elderberries to remove toxins? ›

To neutralize toxins, specifically cyanide-inducing glycosides, heat treatment is a must. Boiling elderberries for at least 30 minutes is the go-to method. This ensures the destruction of harmful compounds. Steaming or baking can also do the trick, as long as the berries reach a high enough temperature.

What part of elderberry is used for tea? ›

Elderberry tea can be made from two parts of the plant – berries and flowers. Each of them has a very different flavor, color and texture, and may provide health benefits.

Does elderberry affect blood pressure? ›

Elderberry can lower blood pressure.

The antioxidants, such as polyphenols found in elderberry, lower blood pressure by reducing oxidative stress. Elderberry also lowers uric acid in the bloodstream. Both oxidative stress and uric acid have been found to be a main cause of high blood pressure.

How do you remove cyanide from elderberries? ›

After gathering your elderberries, rinse them thoroughly under running water. This will help remove any dirt or tiny creatures that may have hitched a ride. Next, you need to cook the elderberries to remove the cyanide. Cooking elderberries breaks down their cyanogenic glycosides, thus making them safe to consume.

Who should not drink elderberry tea? ›

Elderberry appears to have few side effects when used properly for short periods of time (up to 5 days). Pregnant and breastfeeding women should not take elderberry. If you have an autoimmune disease, such as rheumatoid arthritis or lupus, ask your doctor before taking elderberry, as it may stimulate the immune system.

Does boiling elderberries destroy vitamin C? ›

Elderberries contain vitamin C, but much of it is destroyed by heat. Adding lemon juice provides an additional vitamin C boost to the syrup.

Does cooking elderberries destroy nutrients? ›

Elderberries were more prone to decrease anthocyanin content after cooking process. Nevertheless, about 70% of the anthocyanins were recovered from the fruit and the water used in the cooking process. Berry anthocyanins' content decreased the most in jam, and in recipes with baking soda.

Does heat destroy elderberry? ›

While immune supporting magnesium, potassium, niacin, viburnic and shikimic acids and other health supporting constituents and nutrients in elderberries can withstand heating and drying, the ascorbic acid, anthocyanins, and many other flavonoids (AKA antioxidants) may not.

What not to mix with elderberry? ›

What other drugs will affect elderberry?
  • medicine to prevent organ transplant rejection;
  • medicine to treat multiple sclerosis;
  • medicine to treat psoriasis, rheumatoid arthritis, or other autoimmune disorders;
  • medicine to treat ulcerative colitis or Crohn's disease; or.
  • steroid medicine.
Feb 22, 2024

When not to use elderberry? ›

"Autoimmune diseases" such as multiple sclerosis (MS), lupus (systemic lupus erythematosus, SLE), rheumatoid arthritis (RA), or other conditions: Elderberry might cause the immune system to become more active. This could increase the symptoms of autoimmune diseases.

Is elderberry tea a laxative? ›

While elderberry syrup is praised for its potential to help you get back on track after the flu, research suggests elderberry tea may offer a different set of perks. Notably, elderberry tea may help reduce chronic constipation.

Does elderberry affect the kidneys? ›

Administration of Elderberry is standard folk medicine for difficulties relating to kidney and urine, in addition to cold and cough symptoms caused by inflammation. It also suggested that about 500 milligrams per day of elderberry extract for about 12 weeks is safe and can help with kidney and urinary problems.

Are there negative side effects of elderberry? ›

Symptoms of eating uncooked berries, leaves, bark, or roots of the elderberry include nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea (2). There is one report of eight people falling ill after drinking the juice from freshly picked berries, including the leaves and branches, from the S. mexicana elder variety.

What does elderberry do to the liver? ›

Long-Term Supplementation of Black Elderberries Promotes Hyperlipidemia, but Reduces Liver Inflammation and Improves HDL Function and Atherosclerotic Plaque Stability in Apolipoprotein E-Knockout Mice.

Does drying elderberries remove toxins? ›

These processes typically breakdown the cyanogenic glycoside (sambunigrin, in the case of elderberry) which leads to the production of cyanide. Cyanide is very volatile (evaporates at slightly above room temperature), so drying or roasting would effectively remove any low levels of poison from the berries.

What are the benefits of dried elderberry tea? ›

Elderberry tea is a natural remedy that has been used for centuries to treat the symptoms of colds and flu. The Elderberry tree is known as Sambucus Nigra, and its antioxidant compounds are both anti-viral and antibacterial, which makes it an ideal choice for treating respiratory illnesses.

Does boiling elderberries remove toxins? ›

The uncooked berries, leaves, bark, and roots of the elderberry plant contain the chemicals lectin and cyanide, which can cause nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. Cooking the berries and seeds will remove the cyanide.

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