What Is Magic Mushroom Tea, And Is It Legal?

By Karla Tafra
March 14, 2023June 25, 2026
magic mushrooms Psilocybin Articles psilocybin mushrooms psychedelics
With 2 comments

Last reviewed and updated: June 24, 2026.

Key Takeaways

Potency vs eating	Same total psilocybin; faster onset (20–30 min), less nausea, similar duration (4–6 hrs)
Preparation	Steep in 175–190°F water (NOT boiling), 10–15 min, strain — boiling degrades psilocybin
Lemon tek	Pre-soak in lemon juice; anecdotally intensifies experience; not confirmed in controlled research
Legal access	Oregon Measure 109 service centers; Colorado Prop 122 personal possession; Jamaica retreats — federally illegal elsewhere in U.S.
Nausea reduction	Straining out mushroom material removes most chitin — the primary cause of GI upset with raw mushrooms

Magic mushroom tea occurs when magic mushrooms dry, turn into a powder, and then steep. Since shrooms don’t degrade when met with boiling water, making magic mushroom tea is a great way to explore the drug’s potency.

How To Make Magic Mushroom Tea

You can make magic mushroom tea by drying magic mushrooms, turning them into a powder, and then adding the powder to hot water. Since shrooms don’t degrade when met with boiling water, making magic mushroom tea is a great way to explore the psilocybin experience.

Let’s now describe all the ingredients you’ll need to make magic mushroom tea and the steps you should follow.

Ingredients:

3.5-7 g of magic mushrooms. Keep in mind that shrooms don’t degrade in hot water, so you don’t need to consume a higher dose than normal. Also, you may want to add a lower or higher amount, depending on the level of experience you want, how many people are partaking, and the species/strain of mushroom you’re using (since different types vary in their potency).
2 decaffeinated and/or herbal tea bags
Herbs and additives (you can enhance the flavor by adding things like ginger, lemon, agave syrup, etc.)
2 cups of water
Coffee grinder
Coffee filter or sieve
Saucepan or pot

Instructions:

Boil 1-2 cups of water in a pot or pan
Grind the mushrooms into small pieces
Add boiling water to the mushrooms
Steep a tea bag in the water for 12-15 minutes
Strain the mixture into a glass/container
Enjoy your trippy tea!

Below are the necessary steps to take when making magic mushroom tea on your own.

Bring A Pot/Pan Of Water To A Boil
How much water you need to use depends on how many tea bags you add, as well as the weight of the mushrooms. Generally, an 8th (3.5 g) of shrooms in two cups of water is a good starting point. The more mushrooms you use, the more water you’ll need.

For the first step, add one cup of water to a pot, pan, or even a kettle. Bring the water to a boil.
Grind Up The Mushroom Into Small Pieces
While the water heats up, go ahead and grind up your mushrooms using a coffee grinder. This will make it easier for your body to digest the material, as it will already be partially broken down. This can lead to a slightly faster onset.
Add Boiling Water To The Mushrooms
Pour the boiling water into a bowl containing the ground-up mushrooms.
Add A Tea Bag To The Water
Add your tea bag of choice to the boiling mushroom water. Let it steep for about 15 minutes. If you want to add flavor additives like lemon or natural herbs, mix these up in a separate cup of boiling water with the extra tea bag. Then add them to your mushroom concoction. Ginger can be a useful additive because it can help reduce potential nausea induced by the mushrooms.
Strain The Mixture Into A Container
After steeping for about 15 minutes, take your mushroom tea mixture and strain it through a coffee filter or sieve into a glass jar or jug (or anything else you want to store or drink it from). This will separate the leftover mushroom chunks and debris from your beverage.

You can then choose to eat the residual mushrooms. However, since psilocybin is water soluble, it’s not necessary to do so. When straining, make sure to squeeze all the water out of the mushrooms.
Enjoy Your Mushroom Tea
Now pour your mushroom-infused tea into an adequately sized glass, and you’re all set to enjoy the benefits of psilocybin. Consume responsibly. If you used a whole 8th for your tea, you don’t need to drink the entire dose (unless you want a strong experience). Instead, you can drink in smaller quantities and monitor your reaction to the tea.

Before Consuming The Tea

Before drinking the tea, make sure to have the proper set and setting. Your mindset should be stress-free and welcoming in order. This will help you avoid any potential discomfort or anxiety. The same should be done with setting, as the environment in which you’re drinking your magic mushroom tea matters greatly.

Make sure to surround yourself with people who support you on this journey. If they’re open to drinking the magic mushroom tea with you, even better.

Be sure to find a comfortable seating position and play relaxing music. Add stress-relieving essential oil smells. Try your best to relax and be open to the entire mushroom trip experience.

When ingesting the tea, you can choose to sip it or drink it in one go. There is no real difference between the two, other than personal preference. If the taste is too strong, bitter, or unpleasant, chugging it in one go may be the best option.

Is This Psilocybin Tea For You?

The verdict on whether or not magic mushrooms lose their potency when boiled is still not in. But since the experience is always very individual, it leaves nothing more than to try it out for yourself. You can try both, eating them and drinking the magic mushroom tea, and noticing the differences, if there are any.

For anyone with interest in trying magic mushroom tea, several recipes are available. Likewise, there are tips about growing magic mushrooms at home.

However, if you’re just beginning your psychedelic journey, take it slow and use a small dose. Preferably, have someone guide you through it all, as you never know what the first experience will be like.

Does it Help with the Taste of Magic Mushrooms?

According to Dr. Emily Biesmans of Katharsis Journeys in the Netherlands, “If you don’t like the taste of mushrooms, many people make a tea. Mushroom tea is probably the easiest on the taste buds if one does not particularly like the taste. Some also add ginger, lemon and honey to the brew to soften it even further.”

About Magic Mushroom Tea

Magic mushrooms are 180+ species of mushrooms which contain hallucinogenic compounds, psilocybin and psilocin. These compounds are being immensely studied for their incredible effect on the human body. These psychedelics often activate serotonin receptors in the brain. Therefore, studies show they often help alleviate feelings of depression, anxiety, and overall stress.

Interested in joining a Psychedelics Clinical Trial? Sign up here now and we will connect you with a clinical trial in your area when one becomes available.

For that reason, research for magic mushrooms to serve as an alternative treatment method continues. Psilocybin has shown progress in treatment-resistant depression, anxiety disorders, PTSD, eating disorders, and more.

After cooking for about 30 minutes, leave them to steep for at least 10 minutes before straining. You can then choose to eat the residual mushrooms. However, since psilocybin is water soluble, it’s not necessary to do so. When straining, make sure to squeeze all the water out of the mushrooms. You can then add some ginger, honey, mint, or lemon to your tea to help with potential nausea.

Magic Mushroom Tea in 2025: Potency, Harm Reduction, and Legal Access

Magic mushroom tea has become the preferred consumption method at legal psilocybin service centers in Oregon and Jamaica, and in therapeutic research settings — making the practical and harm-reduction aspects of tea preparation more relevant than ever.

Tea vs. eating raw mushrooms: potency and onset differences. Brewing psilocybin mushrooms as tea does not dramatically change total potency compared to eating the same quantity of dried mushrooms — the psilocybin and psilocin content is roughly the same. What changes is onset and nausea. Hot water extracts psilocybin from the mushroom material, which means you are consuming mostly the dissolved alkaloids with less of the fibrous chitin that causes nausea in many people. Onset is typically faster (20–30 minutes vs 30–60 minutes for eating whole mushrooms) and nausea is significantly reduced for most users. The lemon tek variant — soaking mushrooms in lemon juice before hot water — is believed to convert psilocybin to psilocin before ingestion, potentially intensifying and shortening the experience. This is anecdotally reported but not confirmed in controlled research.

Legal psilocybin tea at Oregon service centers. Oregon’s Measure 109 licensed service centers — operational as of 2023 and expanding — use psilocybin in forms including mushroom tea. These are supervised, facilitated sessions for adults, no medical diagnosis required. The Oregon Health Authority regulates the preparation and administration of psilocybin products at licensed centers. This is the first regulated, legal market for psilocybin mushroom tea in U.S. history. Jamaica remains a popular destination for legal psilocybin retreat experiences (psilocybin was never scheduled there), where tea ceremonies are a common format.

Harm reduction: temperature matters. One underappreciated harm reduction point for mushroom tea: psilocybin is degraded by boiling water. Steep mushrooms in hot water that has cooled slightly (around 175–190°F / 80–88°C) rather than a rolling boil. This preserves more of the active compounds. Steeping time of 10–15 minutes is typically sufficient. Adding a small amount of citric acid (lemon juice) can improve extraction. Strain out the mushroom material before drinking if you are nausea-prone. Do not add the mushroom material to boiling water and leave it on heat.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is magic mushroom tea stronger than eating mushrooms?

Not significantly — the total psilocybin content is the same. The key differences are: (1) Faster onset — tea typically hits in 20–30 minutes vs. 30–60 minutes for whole mushrooms; (2) Less nausea — hot water extracts the alkaloids away from the chitin (fibrous material) that causes stomach upset, so many people tolerate tea better; (3) Lemon tek variation — soaking mushrooms in lemon or citric acid juice before steeping is anecdotally reported to intensify the experience by pre-converting psilocybin to psilocin, though this hasn’t been confirmed in controlled research. If you use the same dose in tea as you would eat, expect a similar overall experience with faster onset and fewer GI issues.

Is magic mushroom tea legal?

In most of the U.S., no — psilocybin is Schedule I federally, making magic mushroom tea illegal regardless of preparation method. Exceptions: (1) Oregon — licensed service centers under Measure 109 can legally provide psilocybin mushroom products including tea in supervised sessions for adults; (2) Colorado — Proposition 122 legalized personal possession and home cultivation for adults 21+, which includes preparing tea from legally possessed mushrooms; (3) Jamaica — psilocybin was never scheduled; retreat centers operate legally and commonly use tea format. Beyond these, cities including Denver, Oakland, and Seattle have deprioritized enforcement of psychedelic laws, but psilocybin mushrooms remain technically illegal.

How do you make magic mushroom tea?

Basic preparation: (1) Grind or finely chop dried mushrooms (fine grind increases surface area for extraction). (2) Heat water to approximately 175–190°F (80–88°C) — do NOT use boiling water, which degrades psilocybin. (3) Steep mushroom material in hot water for 10–15 minutes. (4) Strain out the mushroom material (this is where most of the nausea-causing chitin is). (5) Drink the strained tea. Optional: add ginger, honey, or citrus to improve taste and reduce nausea further. For lemon tek variation: let ground mushrooms soak in lemon or lime juice for 20 minutes before adding hot water. Dose the same way you would dose dried mushrooms — tea does not change the total psilocybin content.

How long does a magic mushroom tea experience last?

Mushroom tea produces an experience roughly the same duration as eating mushrooms — typically 4–6 hours for most doses, with an afterglow that can extend several hours beyond that. The key difference is onset: tea hits in 20–30 minutes vs. 30–60 minutes for whole mushrooms. The faster onset can make the beginning of the experience feel more abrupt for first-time users, so start with a lower dose if you are new to psilocybin or to tea specifically. Duration is primarily determined by dose — higher doses produce longer experiences regardless of preparation method. Set, setting, and individual metabolism also affect duration.

What Is Magic Mushroom Tea, And Is It Legal?

Key Takeaways