Making Intense Herbal Tea More Palatable

Remember being a kid and hating the taste of that awful cough medicine your mom gave you? She’d say, “It’s medicine—it’s not supposed to taste good.” You’d gulp it down, grateful it was only that tiny plastic cup that came with the bottle.

As an adult, I still don’t love choking down unpleasant-tasting medicine. And as an herbalist, when I’m really sick, that “medicine” can be a whole quart of intense tea.

Which brings me to a simple way to make strong herbal teas much more tolerable.

I recently had what felt like a genius idea. It’s possible I’m late to this party—maybe you’ve been doing this all along—but just in case you haven’t, here’s my most recent herb tip:

When you’ve brewed a whole quart of tea that you know you need to drink but really don’t enjoy, try reducing it down to a few tablespoons. Let it cool slightly, then mix it with equal parts honey. Instead of forcing down a quart of elecampane (aka spicy mud), you can take a tablespoon of sweet spicy mud every few hours instead.

A quick note: some herbs are meant to be taken as a full tea, particularly when hydration itself is part of the medicine. Choose the preparation that best fits the herb and your goal.

We’d love to hear what herb blends you try this with—feel free to share your experiments and successes!