Do It Yourself,  Education,  Herbal,  Natural Remedies,  Wellness

Lemon, Ginger, & Citrus Peel Tea for Cold & Flu Season

Cold and flu (and now Covid) season is coming, so I thought I would share one of my most favorite and beloved teas to help you and your household stay well.

One of my favorite supportive and healing remedies in the winter is a nice hot tea made with ginger, lemon, and dried citrus peel (I prefer orange), with just a little honey. It not only supports healthy immune fuction, it soothes digestion, is anti-inflammatory and a gentle pain and congestion reliever as well. Sadly I am not always up for making it myself when I’m feeling yucky. Luckily, ginger and fresh lemon juice freeze beautifully and orange peel is super simple to dry on your own, making it a breeze to have everything you need prepared ahead of time.

Find yourself a nice large-ish ginger root, depending on how much tea you plan to make. I make a lot so I normally buy one about the size of my hand for the winter. Many grocery stores sell ginger root in their produce section. Wash it thoroughly to remove and dirt/debris, dry it off, and then place the clean unpeeled root in your freezer-safe container of choice. So easy. If you can’t find organic, that’s perfectly fine, use what you have access to. The word is that ginger root will normally keep nicely in your freezer for about five or six months but honestly I’ve kept it for much longer, almost a year, with no issues as long as it doesn’t get ice crystals and freezer burned. When you need some all you have to do is take it out and shave off however much you need with a microplane or cheese grater. Frozen ginger is soooo easy to grate, much easier than fresh. And that’s it. You’re making tea so leaving the peel on is perfectly fine. I almost never peel ginger, even when cooking with it … only if the root has some age on it and the peel is more fibrous/tough.

Dried orange peels are also ridiculously easy. You do need oranges that have not been treated with pesticides for this. Wash your oranges thoroughly and save the peels, pith and all (don’t leave any flesh), and dice into small pieces. Lay them out in a single layer on a clean cloth and cover with a paper towel or another thin breathable clean cloth (I use flour sack towels or muslin). Let them dry, giving them a little toss with clean fingers every other day or so. The pith does impart a bit of bitterness but it has antioxidant, anti-inflammatory benefits, so I leave it. The bitter flavor has been shown to aid digestion, help nutrient absorption, and stimulate immune function. This is what we want.

Lemons are a classic summer fruit, so usually during the summer and even into early fall I will buy the prettiest lemons I can find (because why not), juice them and pour into freezer trays, filling each cup with 1 or 2 tablespoons. Cover the tray with plastic wrap and freeze until solid. Once frozen, I just pop them out and store in freezer bags. When I need it, I simply drop one into my tea cup, allow it to melt down a bit and then add my other ingredients/hot water. I will say though, if you are not planning on using honey or another sweetener, you will probably want to cut back on the lemon, possibly starting with 1 tablespoon, unless you like strong lemon flavor. The sweetness of the honey really cuts the acid of the lemon, but fortunately this is a recipe you can easily play around with and make your own.

I also want to say that you don’t need fresh lemon juice for this. Store bought in a bottle is perfectly fine if that’s all you have, and it works!

I love the taste and heat of ginger so I like to use 2 full teaspoons of grated root but that’s pretty strong for some people. Start with 1 teaspoon and go from there. I usually add this to a tea ball or wand but you can put it straight into your cup and strain before drinking. Sometimes I just dump it all in there and don’t even strain it (and even chew the bits!). It doesn’t need to be fancy to work. Don’t deny yourself the healing or comfort of herbal medicine just because you lack confidence or what some consider ‘proper’ ingredients, tools, etc. Use what you have! It will still work 🙂

So here’s my personal recipe:

1-2 tsp grated ginger root
1-2 T. lemon juice (I prefer fresh/frozen but it isn’t necessary!)
1 T. dried orange peel
8 oz. hot water
1 t. honey or to taste

Drop 1 or 2 frozen lemon juice cubes or 1 – 2 T. lemon juice into a cup. Put grated ginger root and dried orange peel into a tea ball/wand or teacup infuser (or right into your cup). Cover with 8 oz hot water. Cover; steep for at least 15 minutes. Strain if needed. Add honey as desired. Stir and drink warm. It’s nice to garnish with a lemon slice or wedge if you like.

This tea is safe for children over 2 years of age.

If you don’t have the time or simply aren’t interested in the preparation of the tea, our ginger, lemon and orange elixirs are a lovely alternative, although with our orange elixir you do not get the bitterness of the pith. Some people don’t tolerate bitter flavors very well so this is a great alternative for them!

Simply drop the elixirs in hot water to taste. So simple, effective, and delicious. Our elixirs are sweet so you’ll want to taste first before adding honey.

Some lovely (and healthful) additions to the steeping part of this recipe that I like to use to mix it up occasionally, depending on my mood/taste at the moment are thyme, rosehips, chamomile, lavender, calendula, rosemary, basil, cayenne .. even black pepper! Just a pich of any of these works very well. The possibilties are pretty much endless.

When you are sick, this tea is really lovely to just sip on all day if you keep it warm in an insulated cup!

 

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