8 Easy Infused Water Recipes For Hydration (With Directions)

Make hydration fun with these recipes for fruit infused water, either still or sparkling! We offer 8 flavors, so you are sure to find one you love!

Drinking plain ole water has never really been a problem for me—except when I was pregnant. I just couldn’t stomach plain water for almost my entire pregnancy. Before that, I had always laughed at people who said they didn’t like “the taste” of water. What taste!? Water is tasteless! And then I became pregnant, had the morning sickness from hell, and I totally got it. Water tasted terrible for all 42 weeks I was pregnant. My savior during that time? Infused waters!

Now, even though I’m back to enjoying plain water, I still love the treat of some fruit-infused water. It just feels so refreshing, summery, and let’s be honest, fun! Opening up the fridge to see a beautiful pitcher of infused water just makes me want to drink more. When the healthy beverage choice is also the fun choice, it’s a lot easier to make a good-for-you decision.

Honestly, you can put just about whatever fruit you like into a pitcher of water and enjoy the mild, light flavor, but I think it’s so much more fun (and beautiful!) to do tasty combinations of fruits and herbs. I thought I’d show you eight of my favorite combinations today. But before we dig in, a few notes about infused waters:

• The longer they rest, the stronger the flavor. Within about 15 minutes, you’ll get a nice, mild flavor of whatever you’re infusing the water with. The longer it infuses, the stronger the flavor will get.
• You can reuse the fruit for more batches. I can normally get about four refills before the flavor of the fruit is all gone. Keep refilling that pitcher or carafe! I like to make up a carafe in the morning, refill it throughout the day, and then compost the fruit before bed. The flavor will fade after each refill, but it’ll still be delicious. Once your fruit has lost all its flavor, compost it.
• The nutritional benefit is increased hydration. Infusing water with fruit might add a negligible amount of vitamins and minerals from the fruit, but the real nutritional benefit is to make you want to drink more water! Hydration is good.
• Drink it that day. For the best flavor, drink it the day you make it—you might be able to get by with 36 hours, depending on how fresh your fruit is, but it’s best to make it when you want to drink it. For citrus fruits with peel, you want to drink it within a few hours or the water tends to get bitter.
• You can use sparkling or regular water. Use whatever kind of water makes you happy. Sparkling water makes everything feel a bit more fancy, doesn’t it?

How long does it take to infuse these waters?

You can drink these waters within 15 minutes, though the flavor will still be pretty light at that point. The longer you let them infuse, the stronger the flavor will get! I’d recommend waiting closer to 30-60 minutes before drinking.

How long can you keep fruit-infused water in the fridge?

Citrus fruits like grapefruit, lemon, and lime tend to make water bitter after about four hours of infusing, so be sure to drink any citrus-containing infused waters before you hit that four-hour mark. For the other flavors, the water is typically best on the day it is made.

Can I use sparkling water?

Sure can! It makes for a fun, bubbly alternative to regular infused water.

Can I eat the fruit afterwards?

You absolutely can, but the fruit will have lost a lot of its flavor to the water already. Instead of eating the fruit, I usually keep reusing it to make more infusions until the flavor is entirely gone, and then compost it at the end!

How much infused water do these recipes make?

Each of the “recipes” (I hesitate to even call them that) below will make one quart (four cups) of infused water—plus however many extra batches you make with refills. In these pictures, I’m using one liter glass carafes, which are perfect for serving at summer cookouts! These carafes have lids, so I normally make up 4-6 different flavors, place them on ice in a small galvanized tub, and then let people serve themselves flavored water. Folks always rave! 

Another great option is one quart wide-mouth mason jars. I use these when I’m doing infused water just for me. I just fill up a mason jar, stick a straw in, and sip at my desk. When the water is done, I throw in a few more ice cubes, fill it back up, and sip some more. 

Okay, onto the flavors! Don’t forget, these are just suggestions—feel free to create your own favorite combinations.

8 Fruit-Infused Water Recipes

This may sound like a weird combination, but I promise you’ll like it if you try it! Make sure to wash the outside of the grapefruit really well before slicing. Also, citrus fruit tends to turn water bitter if it rests more than about four hours, so only make this one right before you want to drink or serve it.

Grapefruit & Rosemary Infused Water

• Ice
• 1/4 red or pink grapefruit, cut into thin slices
• 1 large sprig fresh rosemary
• Sparkling or regular water

Fill a glass, bottle, mason jar, pitcher, or carafe with ice, grapefruit, and rosemary. Fill to top with water. Enjoy immediately. Refill with more water and ice until fruit flavor is gone. Makes 1 quart (plus refills).

It doesn’t get much more classic (or refreshing) than the lemon and lime combo. When you make this one with sparkling water, it tastes almost like that famous lemon-lime soda (without all the sugar or additives). Citrus fruit tends to turn water bitter if it rests more than about four hours, so only make this one right before you want to drink or serve it.

Lemon & Lime Infused Water

• Ice
• 1/2 lemon, cut into slices
• 1/2 lime, cut into slices
• Sparkling or regular water

Fill a glass, bottle, mason jar, pitcher, or carafe with ice, lemon, and lime. Fill to top with water. Enjoy immediately. Refill with more water and ice until fruit flavor is gone. Makes 1 quart (plus refills).

This one is a fruit flavor explosion! It’s also one of the most beautiful waters in the set—make sure to serve this one at your next party. Citrus fruit tends to turn water bitter if it rests more than about four hours, so only make this one right before you want to drink or serve it.

Strawberry, Kiwi, & Lime Infused Water

• Ice
• 1 kiwi, peeled and cut into slices
• 2 strawberries, hulled and cut into slices
• 1/2 lime, cut into slices
• Sparkling or regular water

Fill a glass, bottle, mason jar, pitcher, or carafe with ice, kiwi, strawberries, and lime. Fill to top with water. Enjoy immediately. Refill with more water and ice until fruit flavor is gone. Makes 1 quart (plus refills).

When it’s 95 degrees out and 90% humidity, THIS is the water you want to drink. It really doesn’t get much more refreshing than this! Make sure to really scrub the outside of the cucumber you use.

Cucumber & Mint Infused Water

• Ice
• 1/4 cucumber, cut into slices
• 1/4 cup fresh mint leaves
• Sparkling or regular water

Fill a glass, bottle, mason jar, pitcher, or carafe with ice, cucumber, and mint. Fill to top with water. Enjoy immediately. Refill with more water and ice until fruit flavor is gone. Makes 1 quart (plus refills).

Okay, I know this combination sounds strange, but it’s really addictive! Make sure you only use really fresh, really tasty watermelon to get the best flavor. You can also try this with cantaloupe, honeydew, or a combo of melons!

Basil and Watermelon Infused Water

• Ice
• 3-4 small slices watermelon
• 1/4 cup fresh basil leaves
• Sparkling or regular water

Fill a glass, bottle, mason jar, pitcher, or carafe with ice, watermelon, and basil. Fill to top with water. Enjoy immediately. Refill with more water and ice until fruit flavor is gone. Makes 1 quart (plus refills).

I like to make this one when our black raspberries are coming off—it doesn’t get much fresher than that! It might take a few extra minutes to get the raspberry flavor in your water.

Raspberry & Mint Infused Water

• Ice
• 1/4 cup fresh raspberries
• 1/4 cup fresh mint leaves
• Sparkling or regular water

Fill a glass, bottle, mason jar, pitcher, or carafe with ice, raspberry, and mint. Fill to top with water. Enjoy immediately. Refill with more water and ice until fruit flavor is gone. Makes 1 quart (plus refills).

All of the flavor of a piña colada with none of the hangover! This is a great combo if you want to get that tropical feeling. I like to make up a carafe of this one when we go to the beach.

Pineapple & Coconut Infused Water

• Ice
• 1/3 cup slices fresh pineapple
• 1/4 cup fresh coconut chunks (outer shell removed)
• Sparkling or regular water

Fill a glass, bottle, mason jar, pitcher, or carafe with ice, pineapple, and coconut. Fill to top with water. Enjoy immediately. Refill with more water and ice until fruit flavor is gone. Makes 1 quart (plus refills).

Whole blueberries tend to take a few extra minutes to infuse water (because of their skin). Either wait about 30 minutes before drinking, or slice your blueberries in half before you add them. Citrus fruit tends to turn water bitter if it rests more than about four hours, so only make this one right before you want to drink or serve it.

Blueberry & Orange Infused Water

• Ice
• 1/4 cup fresh blueberries
• 1/2 orange, cut into thin slices
• Sparkling or regular water

Fill a glass, bottle, mason jar, pitcher, or carafe with ice, blueberries, and orange. Fill to top with water. Enjoy immediately. Refill with more water and ice until fruit flavor is gone. Makes 1 quart (plus refills).

I like to rotate through the flavors throughout the week—although right now, I’m seriously digging the Pineapple Coconut. Make sure to chime in with your favorite infused water combo in the comments. I always love trying out new flavors. Happy hydrating, friends!

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