Lemon, Ginger, and Jujube Tea
A simple, sip-all-day remedy
Hello and happy 2024!
Before I drop the tea (sorry lol), a short PSA that today is the LAST DAY to sign up for Nourish Yourself with Brooklyn Strength. Cadence and I will host Nourish’s first group coaching call this Saturday 1/6 to kick off seven weeks of learning how to tune into our bodies’ natural cues and signals, cook and snack with confidence, and divest from a lifetime of guilt and shame around food. You can read the newsletter linked below for more details. FYI: This is the last time we’ll be offering this program until next fall. I hope to see some of you there!
Okay, the tea.
It’s only three days into the new year and I already have a contender for Beverage Of The Year (or at least the season). It’s simple: Simmer a whole thinly sliced lemon (pith, peel, and all), a few slices of fresh ginger, and a small handful of dried jujubes until reduced by a third, then drink with honey. Rinse and repeat whenever you feel like crap.
This tea came about after I recently found a bag of dried jujubes, or red dates (sometimes known as Chinese dates), in the back of the cabinet and was pondering how to use them. I was reminded of a strong Korean tea of jujubes, ginger, and cinnamon sticks that my parents used to simmer in their slow cooker throughout the winter months. I didn’t care much for the potent cinnamon stick element in their version, but it turns out I adore the combination of jujubes, ginger, lemon, and honey. I made this tea all through December as I was slogging through a smorgasbord of ail, including the nasty bout of Covid I got a week before I turned 35 (not how I would suggest spending a birthday, tbh) and plan to have a pot of it going all winter to sip whenever I’m feeling under the weather. If you’re a friend of mine and you get sick this season, I’m probably bringing you a thermos of this tea.
In case you’ve never used dried jujubes before: Good-quality dried jujubes are deep red in color and have wrinkled skins but are still pliable, with a pleasantly spongey-chewy texture. They can come with or without pits, and either is fine to use in this recipe. Like other dried dates, dried jujubes are naturally sweet in flavor—they taste like a cross between dried apple slices, raisins, and sweet-tart dried mango. A one-pound bag of dates will last for at least a year stored in a cool, dark pantry. If possible, try to seek organic dried jujubes like these (no affiliate link/I haven’t tried these, but they look like a good option).
In addition to simply being delicious, jujubes have a long history of medicinal and culinary use in Chinese and Korean traditional medicine. The fruit and its seeds are often utilized within those healing traditions to treat stress, support the immune system, promote sleep, clear respiratory ailments, and more.
You can dress up the tea with a cinnamon stick or a small handful of goji berries and obviously a spoonful of honey if you’d like, but it’s a lovely cup of potent comfort all on its own, and a good reminder that we could all use a little pause to drink to our health at the start of a new year, yes? See you all next week. –Chaey
Lemon, Ginger, and Jujube Tea
Ingredients
1 lemon, thinly sliced
1 two-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled, thinly sliced
6 or 7 dried jujubes (red dates)
Honey, preferably raw, for serving (optional)
Preparation
Combine lemon, ginger, jujubes, and 8 cups of cold water in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat then reduce to a simmer. Partially cover pan and continue to simmer until tea is reduced by a third, about 1-2 hours.
Fish out jujubes and place in a small fine-mesh strainer set over the saucepan of tea. Use the back of a spoon to press down on jujube solids to extract all the rich fruity liquid, which will give the tea a more pronounced flavor.
Serve tea with honey to taste, if desired.
Do ahead: Store any leftover tea in an airtight container and chill for up to five days; reheat and sip whenever a cozy craving strikes. You can also fill up the saucepan of spent lemon/jujube/ginger with more water for a slightly weaker but still delicious second steep.