Don't Throw Away Avocado Pits. Brew Them For A Rich, Energizing Tea

The next time you make some guac, don't throw away that avocado pit. There's a lot that you can do with it after scooping out the fruit inside. You can turn the seed into a paperweight, use the avocado pit for food coloring, mix it with oil and vinegar for a DIY wood polish, or turn it into a facial scrub for an at-home spa day. You could even use the pit to grow your very own stash of avocados at home — and save a few pennies along the way. But did you know that you could make tea out of it, too? It's true, avocado pits can be brewed into a herbal tea with just some water and a bit of sweetener for a refreshing and nutrient-dense drink.

In fact, nearly 13-18% of an avocado is its seed, which is filled with nutrients including vitamins and antioxidants that you might be able to benefit from rather than letting them go to waste. While an avocado's seed is quite hard and not the easiest to consume directly, the great thing about turning it into a tea is you get all of the potential health benefits without having to eat it whole — and the process to make the tea is quite simple.

It's incredibly easy to make avocado tea. All you really need is 2 cups of water for every avocado pit and ... well, that's about it! Although, you might want to add some taste enhancers to sweeten it up.

However, there are a few additional steps needed than just pouring hot water over an avocado pit. First, you'll want to bring a pot of water to boil and then add the whole avocado pit to it. Let the seed boil in the water for at least five minutes so it softens. After that time, you should scoop out the pit, chop it into tinier pieces, and place the smaller chunks back into the pot for another 10 minutes of boiling. Once that's done and the tea turns a bright red color, you can strain the drink into a cup and discard the chopped-up pit.

An avocado pit will leave bitter notes in the drink, which is why a drizzle of honey and spices like cinnamon are great to help sweeten it and mask the sharp flavor. You could also add some ginger to the pot when you boil the avocado pit — doing so will help the flavor and provided an added boost of possible health benefits. 

While the benefits of many fruits, vegetables, and flowers are very well known, the potential health benefits of avocados and avocado pits may be less familiar. Avocado pits contain fatty acids, carbs, and fiber, as well as traces of protein. The fiber present in an avocado pit can aid digestion and lower bad cholesterol, which means a tea brewed with the seed might be a good after-dinner digestive drink. In some countries like Nigeria, the extract from an avocado pit is often used to reduce blood pressure as well.

The pit is also where nearly 70% of an avocado's antioxidants are stored, including vitamins C and E, both of which may help strengthen immunity and improve the health of your hair, nails, and skin. Additionally, avocado pits contain antibacterial and anti-fungal properties that can help with infection, making avocado tea an excellent option to sip on when you're feeling under the weather.

Normally, when avocado pits are consumed, they are dried, chopped, and blitzed into a powder, then mixed into flours, sauces, smoothies, and wellness drinks. Though, those options don't always harness all of its powerful potential as drying an avocado pit opens it up to oxidization, which can remove some of the beneficial antioxidants. Avocado tea, on the other hand, retains those properties, making it an even more relaxing and refreshing drink.

Editor's Note: Research on the health effects of avocado pits is limited, consuming them in large amounts could be harmful.