What is Butterfly Pea Flower?
A Complete Beginner’s Guide
Butterfly pea (clitoria ternatea) goes by many names and is famous around the world, not for its fruits, but for its flowers.
The deep blue blooms on the butterfly pea earned their Latin name for the female genitalia they resemble. Butterfly pea flower has been prized for centuries because of the unique, color-changing effect they can create.
What is butterfly pea flower?
Butterfly pea (clitoria ternatea) is a flowering plant also known as Asian pigeonwings, blue butterfly pea or blue ternate flower. It is a type of pea, but its flowers are more famous than its fruit. The purple blooms have been used for centuries as a natural food dye. It is still a popular tea enjoyed around the world and an important part of daily religious rituals in India.
Butterfly pea flower tea is famous for its deep cobalt blue color, which transforms based on the pH level of the drink. For example, adding lemon or lime juice will turn the blue tea a rich violet color. Adding tonic water lowers the pH even more and turns the blue tea a bright pink.
A popular use of the butterfly pea flower tea today is in cocktails, where the bartender incorporates the instantaneous color change in front of their guest. Other uses include freezing the tea into ice cubes, causing the drink to change color, creating a “mood ring cocktail” as the ice cubes dissolve.
History of the blue ternate flower
Butterfly pea flower has been a common tea in Southeast Asia for centuries, especially in Thailand and Vietnam.
When served hot, it’s usually mixed with lemon and honey as an after-dinner beverage. This preparation, called nam dok anchan in Thai, is also a common refreshment at spas. When served iced, blue butterfly tea is mixed with cinnamon, ginger, honey, mint and/or passion fruit.
In addition to teas and traditional medicines, the butterfly flower has been used for generations to create a Malay breakfast dish called nasi kerabu, featuring blue rice eaten with fried chicken or fish.
What does butterfly pea flower taste like?
Butterfly pea flower tea is earthy and floral but the flavor is mild. The vibrant colors lead many people to expect a sweet, fruity flavor, but it’s actually a very gentle herbal tea, which is why it is traditionally mixed with sweeteners and fruit.
How to make dried butterfly pea flower tea
If you want to make your own tea at home, your first step will be to order some dry butterfly pea flowers or butterfly pea flower extract. When the flowers arrive, you’ll need some filtered water, a tea strainer with an electric kettle.
- Add five teaspoons of dry tea flowers to 250ml of near-boiling water (208 degrees).
- Rest for five minutes and strain tea from the spent flowers.
- Stir in honey to taste and serve hot or cold, in a clear glass mug with a lemon wedge.
- Squeeze lemon to transform the tea from blue to purple, drink, and enjoy!
Where to buy butterfly pea flower tea
Not commonly found in supermarkets, you can buy butterfly pea flowers online from Amazon and many other specialty tea retailers. If you plan to make cocktails, try a bottle of Unicorn Butterfly Pea Vodka or Unicorn Butterfly Pea Tequila, which both feature butterfly pea flowers already infused into the spirit.
How do you make a butterfly pea flower cocktail?
Our color-changing vodka is made from corn neutral-grain spirits infused with butterfly pea flowers, while our color-changing tequila is distilled in Alambic Armagnacais stills with non-GMO agave. We make it easy to incorporate color-changing tea into your cocktails. Use our blue vodka and tequila as the primary spirit, or add them as a float to any alcoholic beverage.
Once you have your bottle of tequila or vodka, that changes colors, you’ll want to pick your favorite mixer and citrus fruit. For example, you could start with a Unicorn Shot which includes a 1.5 oz shot of Unicorn Butterfly Pea Vodka, 0.5 oz soda water and lime garnish.
Try a Unicorn cocktail like this one:
UNICORN SODA
- Add 2 oz of Unicorn Vodka to a 16 oz cocktail glass filled with ice.
- Fill a cocktail glass with 12oz of soda water in front of the drinker. (The cocktail will turn from blue to purple because the soda water will change the pH of the drink.)
- Serve with a lime wedge garnish or two. (The additional acidity from the lime will turn the cocktail pink.)
- Squeeze lime to make the cocktail more purple or even pink. Enjoy!
Or try a Unicorn Cocktail like one of these:
Unicorn vodka
Shot
Unicorn vodka
Martini
Unicorn Tequila
Shot
Unicorn Tequila
Margarita
