Ginger is a medicinal and aromatic plant known in the folk medicine of many cultures, both Eastern and Western. The part that is used of ginger is the rhizome, or the root. It is commonly found on the market both in its fresh form and in its reduced dry form.
Cinnamon is an evergreen tree, also exploited in the curative and aromatic sphere. The bark is used for cinnamon, wrapped and dried in long sticks, or reduced to powder.
Why ginger and cinnamon together
Ginger and canella together give life to a unique and irreplaceable combination of flavor and aroma.
The properties are similar and enhanced by the combination of these two spices:
heating : both in winter and in summer the ginger and cinnamon herbal tea stimulates sweating and helps to warm the body;
digestive : the bitterness of ginger already stimulates salivation and the start of the digestive process from the mouth, while cinnamon acts more at the gastroenteric level;
antiseptic and antiviral : the eugenol of the canella has antiseptic power and is combined with the anti-inflammatory quality of ginger, whose antiviral qualities are still present, although to a lesser extent;
How to prepare ginger and cinnamon tea
We recommend using fresh ginger and cinnamon sticks . Regarding cinnamon, the best is ceylon cinnamon, but even the common cinnamon, also called cinnamon or Chinese cannela, can go well.
Here is the recipe :
Ingredients for 2 cups
> half a liter of natural water;
> a ginger root about 4 cm long, peeled and grated;
> a cinnamon stick of about 2 cmd in length, crumbled;
> 1 teaspoon of honey or other natural sweetener (agave syrup, barley malt, etc.) of your choice.
Preparation
Water is boiled in a saucepan. Spread the spices over a low heat and leave to infuse for ten minutes. Strain, pour into cups, sweeten. It should be drunk hot, to allow it to release all its aroma and allow it to be received by the stomach at an optimal temperature.
Properties and indications of the ginger and cinnamon herbal tea
As already indicated, the ginger and cinnamon herbal tea has digestive and diaphoretic properties . It is also recommended in case of nausea of various origins, indigestion or before meals to favor food transit. It has antioxidant, tonic properties and allows you to control cholesterol levels.
Contraindications: use should be limited in case of pregnancy .
Variations and uses: it can be used at any time of the day : in the morning instead of tea to give a boost of energy to the day, the afternoon for a warm and aromatic break, in the evening to combine sleep and digestion.
It can be combined with other hot spices with an intense aroma, such as cardamom and cloves . It combines well with spicy honeys, chestnut and eucalyptus, thanks to which it helps in case of coughs and colds.
You can prepare decoctions with ginger and cinnamon, letting the spices boil together with water, rather than leaving them to infuse: in this case, more active ingredients are extracted from the harder parts of the plants, since cooking is prolonged.
