Ranawara Tea (Cassia Flower Tea)
Also known as Ranawara Flower Tea
Ranawara tea, also called cassia flower tea, is a golden, caffeine-free Sri Lankan herbal infusion. You brew it from the bright yellow flowers of the ranawara plant, Senna auriculata, known as Tanner's cassia. Fresh or dried, the little flowers steep into a mild, lightly earthy and gently sweet tisane. It has long been valued in traditional wellness, often talked about for blood sugar, and it makes a clean, refreshing cup to sip through the day.
Ranawara tea is a golden, caffeine-free herbal tea made from bright ranawara flowers. It is mild, earthy-sweet and gentle, the daily tisane of Sri Lankan wellness.
- Total time
- 15 min
- 5 min prep · 10 min cook
- Serves
- 2 people
- Difficulty
- Beginner
- Spice level
- Mild
- Country help
- USA · UK · AU · CA substitutes included
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Ranawara Tea
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Nutrition
Estimated values, per serving.
About This Dish
Walk past a hedge of ranawara in bloom and you cannot miss it. It is a low, sprawling shrub covered in hundreds of bright yellow flowers, the petals soft and papery in the morning light. Ranawara, Senna auriculata, called Tanner's cassia in English, grows freely across the dry zones of Sri Lanka. For generations people have gathered the flowers, dried them in the shade and dropped them into a pot of water to make one of the island's oldest herbal teas. The cup it gives is pale gold, faintly earthy and softly sweet, with none of the briskness of black tea.
This tea is a quiet ritual, not a ceremony. In many homes a jar of dried ranawara flowers sits in the kitchen just like ordinary tea. People brew it in the morning or after a heavy meal, and sip it slowly without fuss. It has no caffeine, so it works at any hour, late evening included. It sits in the same family of gentle, plant-led wellness brews Sri Lankans reach for out of habit, alongside belimal and the leafy kola kenda porridges.
People mostly talk about how ranawara fits into traditional ideas of balance and wellbeing. It has a quiet reputation in folk and Ayurvedic practice, and it is the herb that comes up most when the conversation turns to a soothing daily drink. You do not need to overstate any of that to enjoy it. At heart it is just a beautiful, calming cup. Golden in the glass, mild on the tongue, and easy to make from a small handful of flowers and a pot of hot water.
I think the pleasure of ranawara tea is in its gentleness. There is nothing to fight against, no bitterness to mask, no sweetness to chase. You steep the flowers and watch the water slowly turn the colour of pale honey. You breathe in a soft, hay-like warmth, then drink it as it is or with the lightest touch of sweetening. It asks you to slow down for a few minutes, which may be the most traditional thing about it.
What Is Ranawara (Senna Auriculata)?
Ranawara is the Sinhala name for Senna auriculata, a flowering shrub known in English as Tanner's cassia and sometimes as the matura tea tree. It grows wild and as a hedge across the drier parts of Sri Lanka and South Asia. You spot it straight away by the clusters of bright, buttery-yellow flowers. The flowers are what you use for tea, picked when fully open, although the buds, leaves and bark all have their own uses in traditional medicine. Dried and stored well, the flowers keep their golden colour and gentle aroma for months.
Fresh flowers and dried flowers brew differently enough that it's worth knowing. Fresh ranawara, used soon after picking, makes a lighter, more delicate, faintly floral cup. Dried flowers, the way most people actually keep and use them, steep darker and a little earthier, with a rounder, hay-sweet warmth, because drying concentrates the flower. Either way, watch the colour: a good steep turns the water a clear, glowing gold, and that golden hue is as much a part of ranawara tea as the taste itself.
What It Should Taste Like
Mild, clean and gently warming. You get a soft earthy-sweet, hay-like note and no bitterness or astringency. The colour is clear, glowing gold. The flavour is light enough to drink plain, but a thread of honey or a slice of ginger lifts it nicely.
Ingredients
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- Dried ranawara flowersor 2 tbsp fresh flowers1 tbsp
- Water2 cups
- Honey or jaggeryto tasteoptional
- Fresh ginger1 thin slice, for warmthoptional
- Lemon or limea small squeezeoptional
Method
Follow these 4 steps. Each one explains not just what to do, but why it matters.
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- 01
Measure the Flowers
Measure about 1 tablespoon of dried ranawara flowers for two cups of water. If you're using fresh flowers, roughly double that. Pick the flowers over and discard any stalks or browned bits.
Ranawara is a mild herb, so the measure is forgiving. A level tablespoon of dried flowers per two cups gives you real colour and gentle flavour without going heavy. Dried flowers are concentrated, which is why you need fewer than fresh ones, where the petals still hold water and steep lighter. Look at the flowers while you measure: good dried ranawara stays a warm yellow-gold rather than fading to dull brown. That colour tells you it was dried in the shade and stored away from light, which keeps both colour and aroma intact.
Tip: Steeping is forgiving, so start with a level tablespoon and add a few more flowers next time if you want a deeper gold. It's easier to build up than to rescue an over-strong pot.
- 02
Heat the Water
Bring the water to a boil, then take it off the heat for a few seconds so it settles to just off the boil before it meets the flowers.
Unlike black tea, which wants a fierce rolling boil, delicate flowers are happiest in water that's hot but no longer violently boiling. You want the moment the big bubbles calm to a gentle shimmer. Water that's too aggressive can scald soft petals and pull out a faint bitterness. Water that's properly hot but settled draws out the colour and the soft, honeyed aroma cleanly. Listen for the roar of the boil dropping to a quiet hiss. That's your cue.
Tip: If you're adding a slice of ginger for warmth, drop it into the water as it heats so its flavour gets a head start before the flowers go in.
- 03
Steep the Flowers
Add the ranawara flowers to the hot water, cover, and let them steep for 5 to 7 minutes until the water turns a clear golden colour.
The colour comes slowly, so resist the urge to rush it. Within a minute or two you'll see fine threads of gold start to bleed from the flowers and curl through the water. By the fifth minute the whole pot has turned the colour of pale honey. Keeping it covered traps the gentle, hay-sweet aroma that would otherwise drift off in the steam. A longer steep deepens the gold and the earthiness, but ranawara never turns harsh the way over-steeped black tea does, so you have room to find the strength you like.
Tip: Watch the colour rather than the clock. A clear, glowing gold means it's ready. A deeper amber means a stronger, earthier cup. Both are good.
- 04
Strain and Serve
Strain the tea through a fine mesh into cups or a warmed pot, leaving the spent flowers behind. Drink it plain, or sweeten lightly to taste.
Strain as soon as you have the colour you want. That gives you a clean golden cup, no loose petals, and stops the flowers steeping further. Ranawara is mild and naturally a little sweet, so taste it before adding anything. Many people drink it plain. If you do sweeten, a thread of honey or a little melted jaggery suits its earthy warmth better than plain sugar. A small squeeze of lemon or lime brightens it, makes the gold shine.
Tip: Gently press the spent flowers against the strainer with the back of a spoon to get the last of the colour out, then discard them. The brewed flowers won't keep.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
- Using too few flowers, so the cup is pale and watery with barely any colour or flavour. Build up to a tablespoon of dried flowers per two cups.
- Pouring fiercely boiling water straight onto the delicate petals. It can scald them and draw out a faint bitterness.
- Steeping uncovered, which lets the soft, hay-sweet aroma escape in the steam.
- Drowning the gentle flavour in sugar. Ranawara is naturally mild and lightly sweet, so taste it before you add any sweetener at all.
- Storing dried flowers in light or damp air. That fades the golden colour and dulls the aroma.
Serving Ideas
- Sipped on its own as a calming, caffeine-free cup in the morning or last thing at night.
- Sipped slowly after a heavy rice and curry meal to settle and refresh.
- Brightened with a small squeeze of lemon or lime and a thread of honey.
- Warmed with a slice of fresh ginger on a cool or rainy day.
- Cooled and served over ice as a golden, refreshing iced herbal tea.
Building a whole plate around it? Start from our sri lankan breakfast menu, which sets out what to cook alongside it and in what order.
Storage and Make-Ahead
Best brewed fresh and drunk while warm, though it is lovely chilled over ice on a hot day. You can keep a brewed pot covered in the fridge for up to a day and drink it cold. Dried ranawara flowers themselves keep for months in an airtight jar away from light, heat and moisture, which protects their golden colour and gentle aroma.
Two Ways to Cook It
Drop a ready-made ranawara tea bag, or a tablespoon of dried flowers in a strainer, into a mug of hot water. Cover and steep for 5 minutes. Lift it out, sweeten with a little honey if you like, and you've got a proper golden cup with no fuss.
Steep loose dried ranawara flowers, ideally shade-dried and golden, in just-off-the-boil water in a covered pot for 5 to 7 minutes. Strain through fine mesh and drink it plain or with a touch of jaggery. Let the natural earthy-sweet flavour and clear gold colour speak for themselves.
Lighter and Healthier Version
Ranawara tea is already about as light as a drink gets. Caffeine-free, naturally low in calories, and it needs nothing added to taste good. The only thing to watch is what you sweeten it with. These notes are just about keeping the cup as clean and gentle as the flowers intend.
Drink It Unsweetened
Ranawara is naturally mild and faintly sweet, so try it with nothing added first. Most cups taste rounded and pleasant entirely on their own, with virtually no calories.
Sweeten with Jaggery, Lightly
If you want a touch of sweetness, a small amount of jaggery or palm treacle suits the earthy flowers. It brings a bit more character than refined sugar, and keeps the amount modest.
Brighten Instead of Sweeten
A small squeeze of lemon or lime lifts and freshens the cup without adding sugar. It makes the golden colour glow.
Serve It Iced
Make it a bit stronger, leave it to cool, then pour it over ice. It's a caffeine-free iced tea that honestly doesn't need any sweetener to be good.
Frequently Asked Questions
Ranawara tea is a golden, caffeine-free Sri Lankan herbal tea. You make it by steeping the bright yellow flowers of the ranawara plant (Senna auriculata, or Tanner's cassia) in hot water. The flavour is mild, lightly earthy and gently sweet. It's naturally low in calories, and people enjoy it both as a soothing everyday drink and as part of traditional wellness habits.
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