Can cilantro be used for tea or tisane?

Question

I love using my dehydrator. Can I use dried cilantro as tea, or with other herbs to make tea? If so, how would I pick herbs to use with it?

Answer 1

Cilantro is one of the herbs that doesn't retain much flavor when it's dried; it's unlikely to be particularly tasty when made into a tisane. On the other hand, the dried seeds of the plant -- called "coriander (seeds)"* -- have a pleasantly tangy and floral/citrusy taste.

They are occasionally used as a flavoring agent in beer, so it's perfectly reasonable to think of them as a candidate for tisane. The flavor of coriander is not dissimilar to chammomile, and might complement that. It would probably make an interesting mix with black tea, too -- in fact, it should be noted that coriander is sometimes an ingredient in Masala Chai, the sweet Indian tea-milk-spice drink.

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*In the US, the leaves are referred to as "cilantro", whereas "coriander" most often means the seeds (although sometimes the leaves).

Answer 2

According to this The Hour For Tea blog entry, cilantro is one of several ingredients in a tisane for which it claims some medical benefits (emphasis added):

Catnip tea was used as a sedative, along with lavender, chamomile, coriander or cilantro; peppermint could also be used to loosen phlegm, and a tisane of thyme with honey was used as a sore throat remedy and for scratchy coughs.

Note that this was not described as tasting good, or even that flavor was the point.

Answer 3

Cilantro tea is used in several Ayurvedic remedies. You will need approximately 15 minutes to make cilantro tea. Here you can get how to make Cilantro tea.

Answer 4

In Russia (an all xUSSR) tarhun is very popular carbonated sweet drink that made from tarragon. So why don't try using cilantro? Combination with sugar and maybe a little lemon should be ok.

Answer 5

I think cilantro would make a quite unpleasant-tasting tea. For other herbs, I suggest chammomile, peppermint, spearmint, lemongrass: blends work very well for tea. You could also experiment with dried fruit, like blueberries, hawthorn berries, and lemon zest. And, things I'm unsure how to categorize, such as rosehips, rosebuds, blackberry and blueberry leaves. Experiment and have fun! :) Re: other uses for cilantro, I think it works well in Italian and Mexican food.