Bring out the best in water with these infused water recipes

Written by: Christina Vestey

Infused water can add a burst of flavour, vitamins, and minerals to a simple glass of water. After all, we all need water to keep hydrated. However, for many, the taste is just too plain and so we choose to avoid it. However by adding veggies, herbs, and fruits to our water, we can shake it up to create a vibrant, delicious, and nutritious drink. Citrus, berries, melons, fresh ginger, basil, and mint are all great choices to upgrade your water taste and water consumption. 

Here are our favourite mixes.

1. Cucumber & Mint: Thinly slice half a cucumber. Peel if it isn’t organic! Add the sliced cucumbers to 1 litre of water (4 cups), add some fresh mint leaves and stir gently. Adding some sliced lemon also works well. Cucumber adds extra hydrating benefits and mint aids digestion.
2. Lemon Lime Infused Water: Slice half a lemon and half a lime and add to 1 litre of water. You can add mint for added flavour but this water is rich in vitamin C and great for digestion.
3. Watermelon, Lemon & Mint ingredients are 1 cup of small watermelon pieces, 1 large lemon (sliced), and a handful of mint add to a litre of water.
4. Grape Orange: Add 1 cup of halved grapes and one orange, thinly sliced with rind on to a litre jug of water.
5. Strawberry Lemon: Add 15 fresh strawberries, washed and finely sliced to a 1 litre jug  and add 1 sliced lemon with rind on. Fill with water.
6. Orange Ginger: Slice 1 orange finely and thin slices of fresh ginger ( approximately 3cm) Add to a 1 litre jug of water and let infuse in the refrigerator for a few hours. This is an immune booster with its tangy vitamin C and the ginger supports the digestion.
7. Turmeric and Lemon and black pepper: 1 teaspoon of turmeric or 4 teaspoons of freshly grated turmeric added to the juice of 2 lemons. Crack some black pepper into the mix to enhance turmeric’s benefits and stir. For a warming anti-inflammatory drink serve this with warm water. Otherwise as a refreshing drink, use sparkling water as this prevents the turmeric from sinking to the bottom of the jug.

How do you make Infused Water?

• Use fresh, good quality ingredients. Your drink will only taste as good as what you put in it. Where possible use organic. Herbs are great to grow your own and mint grows quickly and easily.
• Wash everything well to remove any dirt or residues – you don’t want these in your drink!
• Use cold or room temperature water
• Let the fruit infused water set at room temperature for 1-2 hours or refrigerated for about 3-4 hours before drinking it. 
• If you don’t get to your water within about 8 hours remove all the fruits and herbs and discard them. While some fruits last longer citrus fruits like lemon and lime will make the water bitter if left in for longer than 5-6 hours. Once removed you can keep the water refrigerated and ready to grab for up to 3-4 days