Here is how to make your own cough medicine that tastes great, has a bit of a burn going down, and will clear your sinuses while you cook it.
You will need -
3 tbsp sliced ginger
1 tbsp dried peppermint
4 cups water
1 cup honey
You will use -
A small pot
A matching lid or a slightly larger plate
A stove
A cutting board
A knife
Measuring spoons
Measuring cups
A stir-stick of some kind
A mesh strainer and/or collander
A large-ish mason jar or moderate-sized thermos.
First, you're going to slice the ginger root. If you can't get ginger root, see if you can find any non-pickled sliced ginger in the fridge. If your parents cook at home, this shouldn't be difficult. Next, get the peppermint. If your parents don't use loose-leaf tea, you can slice open a bag of peppermint tea and get the same amount. It might have some other stuff in the mixture, but it's all good for you, so ******** it.
Put that s**t in a pot of water (four cups of it!) like so: [x]
Visually note the amount of liquid here. Take a picture. You'll need it for later.
Put it on the stove, switch the burner to H, and bring your mixture to a boil. It might look a little scary and foamy, but just stir it a little to calm it down. Don't panic! The mint fumes at this point will be like heaven to your sinuses. [x]
After it's come to a boil, lower the temp to about 6 or 7. This will let it simmer. To trap the fumes in to ensure you get a quality brew, place the lid (or a larger plate) on top. If the plate keeps jumping, that means the steam is escaping. Don't worry, just turn the heat down a tiny bit more.
Remember that picture I told you to take?
Once the amount of liquid has been reduced by half by the magic of evaporation, take your brew off the burner, strain out the ginger bits and peppermint leaves, and give the remaining liquid about a minute and a half to cool down slightly. Slightly! [x]
Technically, you can stop here, but if you're like me, you're not a fan of straight bitter water, no matter how magical it is. Add the honey slowly, stirring it in until the measuring cup is empty. To ensure you get all of it in there, it helps to fill the measuring cup with the still-hot brew and swish it around it there a couple times before pouring it out and doing it again.
Once that's done, bottle it, pour yourself a touch, and use as needed. My source said to use only a tablespoon every few hours, but trust me, it's impossible to overdose on this and it's not going to make you sleepy. Take as much as you need when you need it. You can refrigerate the brew for up to three weeks. [x]
yum_tea
All done! Feel better soon, and leave a post if you tried this out for yourself! I'd love to hear other opinions and experiences having to do with this recipe. It worked great for me, but things never happen the same way twice. Feel free to tamper around with the instructions and ingredients too, and tell me what you find out! Above all, post some pics! I'd love to see what you got!
