With the cold temperatures you feel like a steaming drink. Even better if, besides heating, it is good for the body
The temperatures are lowered, it is time for herbal teas to warm up a little, but not only. The active ingredients of officinal plants, in fact, also play an important medicinal role.
Infusion or decoction? They are not the same thing
Choose the most appropriate compound to solve the problem or the discomfort that from time to time you want to eradicate, it is not something for everyone, so it is always better to turn to a herbalist. And a lot also depends on the type of drink. Infusion or decoction, which is better to prepare?
What is the infusion and how to prepare it
The infusion is the easiest and quickest way to extract the active ingredients from more delicate parts of plants, like flowers and leaves. To prepare it, bring the water to a boil and, once removed from the heat, pour it over the previously chopped and chopped herbs. Then you can filter and drink immediately, or pour into a ceramic or glass container with the lid, where to store it for no more than a day, because the active ingredients are volatile and evaporate. Depending on the time of maceration, a drink will be obtained aromatic or therapeutic. In the first case, it takes 5 minutes of infusion, in the second up to 20 minutes. Even the quantity is bound to the use that you want to do, but in general it goes from about 15 grams of dried ingredients to 35 grams, if they are fresh, per cup (230 ml of water). We also recommend do not use more than five herbs at a time, because they could interact unfavorably. The aromatic herbs that can be generally prepared in infusion are mint, lemon balm, verbena, elderberry, artemisia and thyme.
And the decoction how is it done?
Not to be confused with the infusion is the decoction. In this case they are used the most coriaceous parts of medicinal plants, like roots, hard seeds and bark. The components should be placed in a pan with cold water, which will be brought to a boil. Depending on the chosen plants – the quantity is similar to those previously indicated for the infusion – you must let it simmer over a low heat for 10 to 30 minutes and then let it rest for another 10 minutes, just enough for it to cool off. The decoction can be used both for internal use and for external use, as in the preparation of wraps, but in this case flowers and leaves are usually used. Among the most widespread decoctions we recall that of ginger, excellent for treating sore throats and colds, and that of parsley, ideal for purifying the kidneys.
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