Name: Starbucks Medicine Ball Tea Recipe
Prep time: 2 min
Cook time: 5 min
Total time: 3 min
Yield: 1
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 3/4 cup lemonade; 3/4 cup water; 1 mint citrus green tea bag (see note); 1 peach chamomile tea bag (see note); 1 teaspoon honey; 1 1/3 cups water; 1 mint citrus green tea bag (see note); 1 peach chamomile tea bag (see note); 1 to 1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice; 1 tablespoon honey

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Learn how to make my copycat Starbucks Medicine Ball Tea Recipe with my easy, step-by-step tutorial! This is the perfect drink for a cold day, or when you’re feeling under the weather.

If you’re a fan of the Starbucks Medicine Ball Tea but don’t want to leave the house and make a Starbies run whenever you’re in the mood, this recipe is perfect for you.

With just 5 simple ingredients and about 10 minutes of your time, you can easily recreate this comforting drink in the comfort of your own home.

What is Starbucks Medicine Ball Tea?

This drink actually originated as a secret menu item for when you have a sore throat or you’re feeling under the weather, but it’s a yummy tea whether you’re trying to ward off a cold or not.

And Starbucks actually made it a regular menu item. So you don’t have to navigate the Starbucks Secret Menu or explain to Starbucks baristas what you want. But they named it “Honey Citrus Mint Tea” on the official menu instead of Medicine Ball Tea.

What is in the Medicine Ball Tea at Starbucks?

It’s made from steamed lemonade, water, two kinds of tea (Jade citrus mint tea and Peach tranquility tea), and a honey blend.

Here’s the full ingredient list:

Lemonade [Water, Lemon Juice, Sugar, Lemon Oil], An Infusion Of [Water, Organic Green Tea, Organic Spearmint, Organic Lemon Verbena, Organic Lemongrass, Natural Flavor], An Infusion Of [Water, Apple Pieces, Candied Pineapple Pieces (Pineapple, Sugar, Citric Acid), Rose Hip Peels, Peach Pieces (Peach, Rice Flour), Peach Pieces, Chamomile Flowers, Lemon Verbena, Artificial Flavoring], Honey Blend [Honey, Water, Natural Flavors, Potassium Sorbate, Xanthan Gum, Citric Acid]

I went to my local Starbucks and ordered it for myself so I could properly recreate the taste. And I felt that you could really taste the lemon, and the peach flavor was also nice. I asked how they make the tea, and they said that they use half water, half lemonade, so that’s how I recreated the recipe at home.

Okay, let me show you how!

Here’s a video tutorial in case you learn better that way. The written tutorial is below!

NOTE: Some links are affiliate. All opinions are my own. If you click a link and make a purchase, I will earn a small commission. This has zero impact on the price you pay, and it helps Buttered Side Up out! Thank you!

Ingredients:

First, here are those 5 simple ingredients you’ll be needing:

6 Ounces of Lemonade: I like this organic lemonade from Santa Cruz, which you can find at Walmart or probably your local grocery store. You could even make your own lemonade.
6 Ounces of Water: As I mentioned above, you’ll be using the same amount of water as lemonade.
Lemon Mint Green Tea Bag: Now as far as I know, Starbucks uses Teavana teas in their drinks, and here they use the Teavana Jade Citrus Mint Green tea. This is a blend of Organic Green Tea, Organic Spearmint, Organic Lemon Verbena, Organic Lemongrass, and Natural Flavor. But you don’t have to buy this specific tea to recreate this at home. Any green tea with mint and lemon will do the trick. I like the Tazo organic Zen green tea which has all those flavors, and it’s Fair Trade.
Peach Chamomile Tea Bag: Again, the Starbucks version uses the Teavana Peach Tranquility tea. But again, you don’t have to purchase this particular peach tea. Look for a peach tea that contains chamomile. Target sells a peach honey tea that contains chamomile, and that’s what I used to recreate this. Keep in mind that the Target peach tea contains caffeine unlike the Teavana peach tranquility.
Honey: Starbucks actually uses a honey blend which contains honey, water, natural flavors, potassium sorbate, xanthan gum, and citric acid. But I just use regular honey.

NOTE: If you really can’t get enough mint flavor, you could even add some fresh mint to the mix!

I’ll also show you how to make this medicinal ball tea with just fresh lemons and honey if you don’t want to buy premade lemonade!

How to Make Starbucks Medicine Ball Drink:

Start by placing the water and lemonade in a small saucepan.

Bring to a boil over the stove.

If you have an expresso machine with a steam want, you can use that to heat up the lemonade and water instead.

Meanwhile, place 1 green tea teabag and 1 peach teabag into your favorite mug.

You’ll want to select a mug that holds at least 12 ounces.

Once it’s boiling, pour the hot lemonade mixture over the tea bags in the mug.

Allow to steep for 3 minutes, or however long is recommended for your particular tea.

Add the honey to the hot tea in the mug.

Make sure to give it a really good stir!

Natural honey is thicker than what Starbucks uses, so you’ll need to make sure it gets well mixed into the drink.

How to Make it with Fresh Lemon Juice:

Now like I said, you don’t have to purchase premade lemonade to make this tea.

Instead, you can use 1 to 1 1/2 tablespoons of freshly squeezed lemon juice.

Then brew the tea with just hot water instead of the lemonade mixture.

You’ll want to increase the water to 1 1/3 cups.

You’ll also want to increase the honey to 1 tablespoon.

Cost Breakdown:

Now for one of my favorite parts, the cost breakdown.

At Starbucks, a tall Honey Citrus Mint tea will set you back around $3.50.

If you make it with the same quality of ingredients as Starbucks, it will be less than half price at around $1.29.

If you use all organic ingredients, it’s still about half price at around $1.36. This is because the organic tea is actually cheaper than the Teavana tea.

So as you can see, it’s a significant savings to make this at home.

Health Benefits:

So, does this tea actually help to ward off a cold?

I personally don’t think it’s a miracle drink, but it could definitely help you get through flu season. Here are some benefits:

Honey: Good quality honey contains antioxidants (source), and some studies seem to indicate that it can help to suppress a cough (source). However, to get the full benefit of honey, it’s best if it’s raw and unfiltered. So keep in mind that some of the beneficial properties could be harmed by the hot tea.
Lemon: Lemon juice contains Vitamin C, which helps to support your immune system by stimulating white blood cell activity (source). However, Vitamin C can also be destroyed by heat, so it’s best to add the lemon juice after the tea has steeped and had time to cool down. But you may find another benefit from the lemon juice: It could help to sooth your scratchy throat.
Green Tea: One of the biggest health benefits of green tea is its antioxidant levels, specifically EGCG, which give it its many healthy properties.
Chamomile: Chamomile could benefit you when you have a cold since it contains compounds that might reduce inflammation (source). Also, it may help you improve the quality of your sleep, which is much needed when you’re getting cold symptoms!

Another great benefit of this tea is that is simply helps to keep you hydrated! It contains electrolytes from the lemon and honey, so it could keep you hydrated better than plain water.

Also, the hot tea can be a wonderful way to soothe a sore throat. And we really can’t dismiss the benefit of improved comfort!

Now that you know how to make this soothing Starbucks drink at home, make sure to check out my other Starbucks copycat recipes to learn how to save more money and make your favorite drinks at home!

More Starbucks Tea Recipes:

Other Starbucks Recipes:

Recipe Card

Yield: 1