Cold brew ginger tea

All winter long you’ll find me with a hot cup of something in my hand.
Anything, really. Hot water and lemon; hot water and saunf (fennel seeds); hot water, lemon and ginger, obviously. Just plain hot water, even. But when it’s warm outside, I don’t want anything hot. I do, however, miss having something soothing and flavoursome to sip on, and that is where my cold brew ginger tea steps in.

If you grew up in India and you don’t know the myriad things ginger is good for, then your nani was remiss. Let me stand in for your lackadaisical grandmum and fill you in: ginger is excellent for everything, from arthritis to heart health. It stimulates your digestion, and boosts immune function (and I’m just getting warmed up), and is also a natural anti-inflammatory, a diaphoretic (a compound that induces sweating), and is great in reducing cold, flu, and fever symptoms. Take it when you have a headache, a sore throat, a tummy ache, or are nauseous. Take it all the time, basically.

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Recipe

Cold-brewed ginger tonic

To make the tea, squeeze one whole lime, one teaspoon of honey, and a pinch each of turmeric and cinnamon into a jar. Throw in three teabags and a generous heaping of chopped up ginger, and fill up with water. Store in your fridge overnight, and then drink first thing in the morning and throughout the day for an elixir with a little kick.