How to Make Ginger Tea From Fresh Ginger Root
Introducing your new fave homemade wellness tonic.
This method for how to make ginger tea from fresh ginger root will surprise you with how easy it is to make such a potent and delicious tisane.
Ginger root tea is one of my absolute favorite drinks to make at home—and it doubles as a wellness tonic that costs merely cents and minutes to prepare. With just a small nub of fresh ginger root, water, and honey, you can make a potent tea that is both soothing and delicious.
According to WebMD, ginger helps to settle stomach aches and nausea, and it may also help alleviate symptoms from muscle pain, menstrual cramps, and respiratory ailments including asthma, coughs, and bronchitis. In addition to these wellness effects, I find that drinking ginger tea is simply soothing and invigorating, highly enjoyable and relaxing. And when made fresh, the tea can be extremely refreshing, having a very different quality of spunk and refreshment than tea made from dried ginger.
In order to make this tea successfully, the trick is to truly simmer the ginger root, not just steep it in hot water. Merely steeping ginger in hot water will give you little more than water with a tinge of ginger flavor. But in boiling the ginger, you’re able to actually extract the flavor and “essence” of ginger right into the water, making a powerful and spirited tea.
I’ve included in this recipe the option to add dried oregano and/or rosemary leaves, which are also both known for their anti-inflammatory and respiratory-supportive properties. By no means are they necessary for the tea, but in the cold and flu months I like to include them for the extra boost of immune support.
The tea is finished off with honey, which helps to cut the bitterness in the tea (the tea will have an even more pronounced bitterness if you include oregano and/or rosemary). Use the honey to taste, as typically the stronger the ginger infusion you’ve made, the more honey you’ll want to balance out the bitterness with a touch of sweetness.
Sources: WebMD here, here and here.
Ingredients
Preparation
Slice the piece of ginger root thinly on a sharp diagonal, making about 4 or 5 slices total.
Combine ginger and water (and optional dried herbs) in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat; reduce to a simmer and cook, partially covered, until mixture is a dark color and smells strongly of ginger, about 10 to 15 minutes total.
Strain mixture into a mug. Stir in honey to taste and enjoy.
(You may also make this in larger quantities and store, covered, in the fridge for a few days. Enjoy chilled or gently reheated.)
