Is nettle tea easy to make?
Nettle tea has been used for centuries to remedy breathing and skin ailments, not to mention ease joint pains and arthritis. Even for anybody who is in great physical health, a mug of nettle tea can manage your hormones, calming your brain, and also give you a boost of much needed nutritional vitamins. What makes this simple tea even more amazing? You can readily produce it at home!
Needless to say, the initial step in brewing your very own homemade pot of nettle tea is being in the position to find a nettle bush. If you do not know what a nettle plant looks like, a simple internet search gives you plenty of pictures. When Mother Nature is involved, make sure you know precisely what you’re dealing with. A number of plants look similar but one may be good for you whilst the other may very well be very poisonous. When doubtful, ask a professional before drinking anything.
Read more about stinging nettle tea
Once you know what you are trying to find, any woods, thickets or even the side of the road are ideal places to search for the nettle plant. It grows similar to a weed, since, well, it truly is one! The the first rule of nettle plant collection is to always wear gloves and a shirt with long sleeves and also to use scissors, reducing your contact with the leaves whenever possible. Nettle leaves are protected with nearly undetectable hair-like stingers that leave a nasty rash on the skin. Also, make sure you collect your nettle leaves from areas not treated with herbicides or are in contact with other chemicals (like car exhaust right beside a busy street).
When selecting your nettle leaves pick younger plants (around spring time) and cut off the bright green tips to collect (the leaves get bitterer as they age). The nettle leaves ought to be washed to remove all dirt and insects after which they are able to either be dried for future pots of tea or used immediately fresh. To dry the nettle leaves, layer them over a paper towel and let them air dry. They may then be kept in an airtight container for future use.
There are lots of recipes available on-line regarding learning to make the best pot of nettle tea; yet, they’re subjective as different people might choose to use more or less nettle leaves according to how bitter they prefer their own tea. A conventional recipe can be to have a tablespoon of dried nettles and to brew it in very hot water for about ten minutes. This step must be taken for the full ten minutes so the water can deactivate the stingers. Or else, you won’t die, even so you could easily get a mild stomach ache or ‘tingling’ sensation when drinking the tea (which you might get anyway, should you have a sensitive system but this will disappear because your body gathers a tolerance to the tea). The leaves may then be drained and the tea safely taken.
More info on stinging nettle tea
If you would like for more of a power punch from the nettle leaves, you could make a nettle infusion, that is essentially a nettle tea that’s brewed longer. A recommended recipe is to take one ounce of nettle leaves and one quart of boiling water and to permit them to soak for, at the very least, a few hours, or overnight in the fridge. Be sure to still refrigerate the infusion so that it does not spoil (in case it does, it can make a wonderful fertilizer on your garden). The infusion could be reheated to have as an extra strong tea or poured over ice or combined with juice for a cold, tasty beverage.
If you love the health advantages of a pot of nettle tea, but cannot get past the taste, adding lemon, honey or even sugar will make your cup of tea that much better for you. Additionally, other herbs and plant leaves can be blended along with the nettle leaves to make your own personal custom super tea! A popular addition for those struggling with indigestion is rosemary, which aids in the discharge of bile to aid process fats. Red raspberry leaves coupled with nettle leaves can make an incredible tonic for an expectant mother, as both help to alleviate excessive bleeding after childbirth. Try out some marvelous combos of your own!
