#Ginger #Tea #GetWellTea #Orange #ViaminC #NaturalHealing #HomeRemedy #ColdAndFlu #Health #Wellness #Natural
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DISCLAIMER: The following post is for education and entertainment purposes, and is not intended to be used as medical advice. Always consult your doctor, and do your own research, before using any herbal medicine or home remedy!
As we settle into cold and flu season this November, it's a good time to start collecting healthful and tasty recipes to help give yourself a boost during these chilly months. The three simple ingredients, orange, ginger, and honey, are each celebrated separately for their health benefits. I'm going to show you how to prepare them into a special, all-natural tea that always helps me feel better when I'm under the weather.
Oh, and spoiler alert.... it tastes great!
Let's take a second to look at our star ingredients, and the health benefits they're well-known for.
Ginger
Ginger is known for its stomach soothing, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory properties. It has been used to ease arthritis pain, settle gastrointestinal discomfort, boost your immune system, and reduce nausea (even due to motion sickness or morning sickness). It has a spicy-sweet flavor, and is often used in Asian dishes.
Orange
This sweet, tangy citrus fruit is packed with vitamin C. An essential immune-system boosting vitamin, Vitamin C also neutralizes cell-damaging free radicals, and helps prevent the oxidization of cholesterol in your bloodstream. Additionally, orange peels are rich in phytonutrients with antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties.
Honey
Honey is like liquid gold. It has been used throughout history for health and beauty purposes, and modern science is finding that many of the virtues attributed to it are actually effective. Honey has antibacterial, anti-fungal, and probiotic properties; and can help sooth a cough, sore throat, or upset stomach. Also, if you're a diabetic, good news! Though it is still a simple sugar, honey is low on the glycemic index; which means it's better for your bloodsugar than normal, white sugar.
Now that we're well acquainted with what's going into our tea, let's get to preparing it.
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| Cut off about an inch of the fresh ginger root. Shave the skin off with your knife in thin slices, and discard the skin. Slice the peeled root into quarter-sized pieces, and drop them into a large pot of water on high heat. I generally use about a half a gallon (two quarts) of water for this part. |
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| Slice the orange into wedges of a manageable size, and squeeze as much of the juice as you can into the pitcher you will be using for the tea. Cooking destroys vitamin C, so setting the juice aside helps to preserve a good amount of it. Slice or tear the orange peel into smaller pieces; about as wide as your thumb. |
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| Add the orange peels to the pot, and give it a stir. By now, the water should be pretty hot. Turn the heat down to medium, and keep the water below a boil. Add the honey. About two tablespoons of honey is sweet enough for my tastes, but if you like sweeter drinks, you should probably put in a little more. Stir in the honey until it dissolves completely, then let it simmer for another couple minutes before turning off the heat. Be careful! If you let the orange peel cook too high, for too long, then it will turn bitter. |
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| Let the tea cool in the pot until it's at least room temperature. Basically, if you tap the side of the pot with your finger, or drip a little bit of tea on your wrist, it shouldn't feel hot. The tea will continue to brew as it cools. Once it's cool enough, pour it into your pitcher. I used two small (half gallon) pitchers, and split the tea and the pulp between them, then filled them the rest of the way with cool water. Store the tea in the refrigerator. I don't always drink ginger tea, but when I do, I prefer it chilly. You can, however, warm it up if you like it hot. Because cooking destroys vitamin C, I recommend about a minute in the microwave for a full mug. Cooking times and power levels may vary depending on the model of microwave you own, but one minute should make your tea warm, but not too hot. Enjoy! |
Thank you for reading! If you enjoyed this article, you may also like to check out some of my other posts. Here's what I recommend now:Healthful, Home Made, Apple-Ginger Tea
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