How to Brew Lungwort (Pulmonaria) Tea the Right Way

July 6, 2026

Lungwort has one of the more on-the-nose names in herbalism. Europeans once believed a plant’s appearance hinted at what it treated, and pulmonaria’s spotted leaves reminded them of lung tissue, so the name stuck. That’s folklore, not pharmacology, and it’s worth being upfront about. But the plant has a long history as a soothing tea for coughs and scratchy throats, and it makes a mild, pleasant cup. Here’s how to brew it properly, plus an honest read on what it does and doesn’t do.

What lungwort actually is

Pulmonaria officinalis is a low, leafy plant with soft, silver-spotted leaves. The dried leaf contains mucilage, the same slippery, water-loving compound that makes marshmallow root and plantain leaf feel coating on the throat. It also carries some flavonoids and tannins. In Andean herbal stalls it gets sold alongside eucalyptus and matico as one of the “chest” herbs, brewed when someone has a dry, nagging cough. The research on it is thin, mostly old European texts and lab notes rather than clinical trials, so we file it under traditional use with a plausible mechanism rather than proven medicine.

What you’ll need

1 to 2 teaspoons of dried lungwort leaf per cup
Fresh water, just off the boil (around 200°F)
A lid or small saucer to cover the cup
A fine strainer, since the leaf is light and fluffy

Step by step

1. Measure loosely. Lungwort leaf is airy, so a “teaspoon” is forgiving. Start with one for a mild cup, two if you want it stronger.

2. Skip the furiously boiling water. Let the kettle sit for thirty seconds after it boils. Water that’s too hot can make delicate leaf teas taste harsh. Around 200°F is the sweet spot.

3. Cover while it steeps. This is the step most people skip, and it matters. Covering the cup keeps the aromatic compounds from floating off as steam. Steep 8 to 10 minutes; mucilage takes longer to release than flavor does, so a short steep shortchanges the soothing part.

4. Strain well. Pour through a fine strainer or a paper filter. The tea comes out pale gold with a mild, grassy, faintly earthy taste. It’s not bitter and doesn’t really need sweetening, though a little honey suits it if your throat is raw.

How often, and how much

For a scratchy throat or a lingering cough, traditional use lands around two to three cups a day, spaced out, for a few days. Lungwort isn’t meant to be a daily forever-tea. If a cough hangs on past a week or comes with fever or shortness of breath, that’s a doctor visit, not a second pot of tea.

Make it a blend

Peruvians rarely drink chest herbs solo. Lungwort plays well with a few others we carry: eucalyptus for that clearing, camphor-like aroma, or plantain leaf (llantén), another mucilage-rich soother. If you’d rather someone else did the blending, our Bronquiosan respiratory blend combines eucalyptus, cat’s claw, and lungwort in one tea bag. You’ll find the rest of the chest herbs in our respiratory support collection.

Storing it

One practical note: because the dried leaf is so light, a 50-gram bag goes a long way. Store it somewhere dry and dark, away from stove steam, and it’ll hold its mild aroma for months. If it starts to smell like nothing, it’s past its prime and worth replacing.

A few cautions

Lungwort in the Pulmonaria family contains trace amounts of pyrrolizidine alkaloids, compounds that can stress the liver in large, long-term doses. For an occasional cup that’s not a real-world concern, but it’s the reason we steer pregnant and breastfeeding women away from it, and why anyone with liver issues should check with a doctor first. Don’t treat it as an everyday beverage, and keep it to short stretches when you actually need it. We’re a herbal shop, not a doctor’s office, so use common sense and ask a professional if you’re unsure.