Tea & infusions
Lavender Tea (Khzama)
الخزامى · khzama
Khzama — Moroccan lavender — brews into one of the most delicately perfumed of the country's herbal teas, pale and floral with a soothing, almost sedative gentleness. It grows wild in the mountains and is dried in fragrant purple bundles at the herbalist, where it is sold as a calmer for nerves and sleep. It is a drink you smell before you taste.
- Type
- Lavender flower infusion
- Served
- Hot, in a glass
- When
- Evenings, before sleep, for calm
- Key flavour
- Floral, perfumed, soothing
What Lavender Tea is
Khzama is the Moroccan lavender, its slim purple flower-spikes carrying the familiar sweet-floral scent in a slightly wilder, more herbaceous form than the garden lavender of Europe. Dried and steeped, it gives a very pale, softly perfumed infusion — one to be brewed lightly, because too much lavender tips quickly from fragrant to soapy.
It sits among the calming herbs of the attarine, brewed as a soother for anxious evenings, headaches and sleeplessness. As much aromatherapy as tea, it is valued for the way its scent seems to settle a restless mind before the first sip is even taken.
How it's made & served
A small pinch of dried lavender flowers is steeped briefly in just-boiled water — a couple of minutes is plenty — then lightly sweetened with honey or sugar. Restraint is everything: the aim is a whisper of floral perfume, not a mouthful of it, so cooks use a light hand and a short steep.
It is often blended to soften and round it out — a few flowers dropped into the mint tea pot, or combined with verbena and other calming herbs into a bedtime infusion where no single herb dominates.
In the glass, at a glance
- Dried lavender flowers (khzama)
- Freshly boiled water
- Honey or sugar, used sparingly
- Often combined with mint or verbena
- A short steep to keep it delicate
A flavour snapshot of what goes in.
When & where you drink it in Marrakech
Dried lavender is a fixture of the herbalist stalls in the spice square, sold loose in fragrant purple heaps and often bagged up for its scent as much as for tea. It is very much a home and evening drink rather than something poured in a café.
You are most likely to meet it brewed in a home before bed, or to smell it as the herbalist scoops it out on a spice souk tour. It sits alongside the other calming infusions in our guides.
Cultural notes
Lavender captures the way Moroccan herbal culture treats scent and health as one thing. The same dried flowers go into tea, into linen and into the little cloth bundles sold for calm and good sleep, so brewing khzama is only one use of a plant valued first of all for its perfume.
Like the other soothing herbs, it is offered as a small act of care — a glass pressed on someone who cannot settle, or brewed at the close of a long day. It is a reminder that the Moroccan tea tray holds not just the bold, sociable mint tea but a whole quiet register of gentle, medicinal brews.
Frequently asked questions
What does Moroccan lavender tea taste like?
Very lightly floral and perfumed, with a soft herbaceous edge. It should be brewed weakly — too much lavender turns the taste soapy rather than pleasant.
Is lavender tea used for sleep in Morocco?
Yes. Khzama is one of the calming herbs Moroccans brew for restless evenings, headaches and sleeplessness, valued as much for its soothing scent as its taste.
Where can I buy Moroccan lavender?
Dried lavender is sold loose by the scoop at herbalist (attarine) stalls in the medina spice souk, often in fragrant purple bundles used for both tea and scenting linen.