This tea recipe is one that’s been passed down from my grandmother, to my mother, and now to me (even my daughter drinks it when she’s feeling sick!). This is my go-to herbal tea when I come down with a cold. Combined with rest and nourishing foods it has helped me get better quickly every time I’ve used this remedy. The ingredients have been used in traditional Ayurvedic remedies for centuries and while my mother and grandmother knew of their benefits from simple experience there is now some scientific research backing up their pharmacological effects. All of the herbs in this tea have proven anti-inflammatory effects which are great for soothing a sore throat and some of them are also expectorants, meaning they loosen up mucus making them great decongestants. Anti-viral and anti-bacterial properties have also been studied in these herbs which makes them great at fighting off the germs that cause colds.
As a bonus, all of the ingredients in this herbal tea are also great for digestion!
Cold Busting Herbal tea:
- 3-4 Cloves: anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, loosens mucus
- 2 cardamom pods, crushed with a mortar and pestle: anti-inflammatory
- 1 stick of licorice root, broken up with a mortar and pestle: antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, loosens mucus
- 1 tsp fennel seeds: anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, loosens mucus.
- 1 tsp carom seeds (Ajwain): antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, loosens mucus
- 1-inch piece of ginger root cut into thin slices: anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial
Directions:
Add all of the ingredients to a small pot of boiling water (3-4 cups), turn off heat and let steep for 10-20 mins. Strain the tea into a cup and let cool, then stir in a tsp of raw honey and enjoy!
You can store the extra in a clean, airtight glass jar and consume throughout the day.
*A word of caution: licorice root has been found to increase blood pressure when consumed in large quantities over long periods of time. DO NOT drink excessive amounts of this tea for long periods of time.