Non-alcoholic kava drinks: recipes

2023-08-03 · 5 min read

By the kava.fyi editorial team · Last updated: 3 August 2023

Why kava needs a different technique than tea or coffee

Kavalactones, kava's main active compounds, are lipophilic, meaning they dissolve far better in fats than in water. The water-based drink itself is always a suspension of fine root particles, not a true solution, so kava mixed with water will sooner or later start settling to the bottom of the vessel. This is normal and does not mean you have done anything wrong. For the same reason, making a tasty, refreshing kava drink follows somewhat different rules than brewing tea or coffee, where temperature and time are what matter most.

Emulsion instead of dissolving

Since kavalactones prefer fat, adding milk, plant milk or a little lecithin helps keep them in suspension for longer, and at the same time softens the root's characteristic bitter, slightly tingling taste. The assessment of this raw material prepared by the European Medicines Agency notes that the composition and behaviour of kavalactones in liquid depend on the solvent used and the preparation method, which in practice means that a drink based on plant milk or coconut water will behave differently from plain water with juice. This also explains why traditional Pacific recipes almost always use coconut milk rather than water alone: it is not just about taste but about making better use of the raw material.

Traditionally in the Pacific, the root was pounded or ground and then strained through cloth into a wooden bowl. The same principle, ground material plus straining, also works in the kitchen: if you are using powdered root, pour the finished drink through a fine sieve, muslin cloth or a nut-milk bag to remove the coarser fibres. The longer and more vigorously you mix or shake the drink before straining, the more kavalactones will pass into the liquid, so it is worth giving this step more than just a few seconds.

How much kava to add, and for how long

Rather than sticking rigidly to one recipe, treat the proportions below as a starting point and adjust the amount of powdered root to your own tolerance and to the strength of that particular batch of raw material, which can vary a great deal depending on the cultivar and drying method. Start with a smaller portion, check the effect after ten to fifteen minutes, and only decide whether to add more the next time you make a drink. It is also not worth preparing the drink many hours in advance: freshly mixed kava tastes best, and over time the drink loses some of the aroma of the added fruit and juices.

Three ideas for an alcohol-free drink

Sweet almond

Mix almond milk with coconut water in roughly equal parts, add a teaspoon of honey and a pinch of cinnamon. Stir in a portion of powdered kava and mix until the drink is smooth, then finish with a handful of sweet fruit, for example banana or mango.

Tart raspberry

Add a teaspoon of raspberry syrup to orange juice, stir in the kava and mix until any lumps dissolve. Finish with tart fruit, for example raspberries or redcurrants; the sharper they are, the better they mask the taste of the root.

Tropical

Combine pineapple juice with apple juice, add a few mint leaves or a little mint syrup and a pinch of cinnamon. Stir in the kava, mix vigorously and serve with pineapple chunks.

What to do when the powder settles to the bottom

If you do not drink it straight away, after a few minutes you will see sediment at the bottom of the glass, exactly as with freshly pressed fruit juice. This is a result of the same lipophilicity of kavalactones mentioned above, not a sign that the drink has gone off. Simply stir it again just before drinking, ideally with a spoon or a brief shake in a closed container, rather than just stirring with a straw, which is usually not enough to lift the sediment off the bottom.

Traditional powder or instant extract

Different forms of kava are available on the market: powdered, dried root, which retains fibres and needs straining, and soluble instant extracts, produced by brewing the root and evaporating the liquid down into a powder or granulate. A scientific review on kava as a dietary ingredient stresses that the variety of preparations on the market and the lack of standardisation between them is one of the bigger challenges in researching the plant, so the result in the glass can vary depending on which product you reach for. The instant form usually leaves less sediment and is more convenient for preparing a fruit drink, but it is the traditional, whole root powder that most faithfully recreates the taste and texture known from ceremonial kava drinking in the Pacific, and it is precisely this form that is easier to strain down to a smooth, fibre-free consistency.

Whichever form you choose, it is worth remembering that the quality and strength of kava also depend on the cultivar the raw material comes from, the chemotype, not just on whether you bought traditional powder or instant. Two portions that look identical to the eye can therefore produce noticeably different effects.

A few extra tips

The tart and sweet fruits in these recipes are not there by accident: the strong flavour of citrus, berries or pineapple effectively masks the bitter, earthy aftertaste of the root, which some people find the least pleasant part of drinking kava. For the same reason it is worth serving the drink chilled, because the low temperature further dampens that bitterness, while not affecting the stability of the kavalactones themselves in the liquid. If you want the smoothest possible consistency, strain the finished drink a second time just before serving, especially if you used traditional, whole root powder.

Before you drink it

Kava, even in the form of a fruit drink, remains a psychoactive plant that acts on the central nervous system, so it is not worth combining it with alcohol or with medications metabolised by the liver without a doctor's advice. You can read about how to choose the right form of kava for your needs in the article powder or instant, and we describe step-by-step brewing the traditional way here. You will find more about kavalactones themselves on the kavalactones page.