Garden Magic: Making Your Own Herb Teas
With Spring upon us, and the need for Earth’s medicine as strong as ever, now is a wonderful time to learn to make exquisite herbal infusion blends. The word ‘medicinal’ comes to mind, though the intent here is to create magnificent concoctions that satiate both your palate and the health of your body at the same time. Tasty, exceptionally healthy herb teas, made at home, for a fraction of the cost you’d find, well, absolutely anywhere — and here’s how to do it…
First a quick, educating note on the true meaning of the word “tea” – this term really only applies to leaves from the actual tea plant Camilla sinensis, not to any herbal formula. When a brew is made in water with plants other than the tea plant, the finished product is known as an “infusion”, or “tisanes” or even “decoctions” (these are all fairly synonymous). Not that it’s a big deal to call it “tea”, though if you get really into it and are discussing your practices with other herbalists, this will help everyone be clear on what you’re making. “Tea” still gets the idea across, and we’ll use both terms here.
For those readers who find themselves thinking, “But I can just buy a teabag filled with X. Why would I take the time and energy to create my own blends when I can get teas in the supermarket?” The honest answer: variety. Most commercial blends contain a small bouquet of herbs and barely scratch the surface of tea-making potential. They are designed to target a broad audience of consumers and rarely have a medicinal focus. While most of us are familiar with tried-and-true herbal infusion ingredients like peppermint, chamomile, hibiscus, rosehip, orange peel and cinnamon, a cornucopia of medicinal herbs is readily available for even more targeted, and delicious, herbal teas. Ever used lavender in an herbal infusion? What about comfrey leaf? Nettles, anybody? a vast array of leaves, flowers, roots, berries, seeds and stems awaits your imagination!
Infusions and tisanes are made when the soft sections of plants – flowers, stems and leaves – are brewed in hot water. These herbs can be set in a brewing basket in a cup or allowed to infuse in a French press. If you want to use herbs that come from the tougher parts of the plant, such as the roots, berries or bark, let these herbs simmer on the stove for fifteen minutes so that their medicinal and gastronomic qualities stand the best chance of coming out. Always cover your infusions and decoctions when they are brewing to ensure essential oils are not lost in the cooking process. If you want to drink your herbs later, or over the course of a few days, most herbs will stay viable for 72 hours if they are refrigerated.
Some books and websites have specific recommendations for measuring herbs and brew times. Making infusions is a lot like cooking up a personalized dish, though – experimentation is the only way to find your inner herbalist. A good guideline is to remember that herbs disperse more of their medicinal qualities the longer they are steeped. At the same time, increasing brew times and herb amount translates to an intensification of flavor. If you are working with herbs that are bitter, be careful not to let them sit too long. Better yet, consider masking their flavor with other herbs that appeal to your palate. Many interesting herbal concoctions have been developed to “help the medicine go down.”
The important thing to remember is that the pharmacopia of healing plants is large enough to accommodate your search for pleasant-tasting, medicinal herbs. By starting with a few basic herbs, your options for blending increases, and you may be able to work with common ailments, such as stomach aches and nervous tension, in your own kitchen. A few considerations for your home herbal pantry include: lady’s mantle, red clover, spearmint, lemon verbena, wild ginger, fennel seeds, peppermint and hibiscus. Stevia leaves, licorice and fennel can all be used to impart a naturally sweet taste to the teas, although honey is always an option as well.
A short list of basics for your home herbal pantry includes: lemon balm, peppermint, ginger root, chamomile (if you aren’t allergic), lavender, nettles, hibiscus, lemongrass, rose hips and licorice. Try to stock a broad spectrum of plants for a variety of situations, and consider trying herbs from different parts of the plant (flowers, leaves, roots, etc.). An added joy is using sweet plants, such as licorice and stevia, as natural sweetners, but most infusions take well to honey, too.
The beauty of herbal infusion making is that your creations are indicative of what you enjoy, what works best with your system and health concerns and what is available at the time. If you’ve always wanted to try coltsfoot or blue vervain, do so. There is no wrong way to make an herbal infusion, and, in fact, discovering your own blends can empower you to widen your appreciation and understanding of herbology, botany and horticulture. Rather than merely dropping a commercial tea bag into a cup of water, consider making “tea time” a moment of healing and creativity. You won’t see you “cuppa” the same way ever again!
June 07 2009 | Gardening | No Comments »