When cold strikes it’s time to call on your immunity herbs and I’ve got the perfect recipe for you to boost your defences against those cold, damp winter bugs. Bringing together herbs to fortify your immune system and warm your chest along with soothing herbs to heal and seal the delicate linings of your upper respiratory system, this is an East-West combo syrup that takes about an hour to make (not including an overnight infusion) and lasts up to 6 months. Don’t expect it to last that long though because like all my recipes, it’s super delicious! Best syrup I’ve made so far according to a very enthusiastic hubby. Enjoy! xo Sulin
If there’s one thing worth getting excited about, it’s immune fortifying herbs. I say ‘fortifying‘ because when we’re sick we don’t always have the energy or physical resources to be ‘boosted’. So as much as I love the concept of ‘boosting’ immunity, when you’re actually unwell you really need strengthening and tonifying. And that’s what the herbs in this syrup will do for you. They won’t push or force your body to perform any harder than it already is, they’ll instead build your immune resilience and physical strength and support your immune processes lovingly.
A base of warming and nourishing herbs for your defence system will open channels through your upper respiratory system and help your blood flow, gathering bugs and debris along the way and flushing them out more effectively. The berry infused vinegar will assist with making your cough more productive so that you can remove the infective pathogens. And tonifying and strengthening herbs help your dry and irritated respiratory surfaces in the throat to heal.
I’ve chosen Astragalus as the key herb in this recipe. Read on to discover more about this amazing herb.
Astragalus for immunity
This Mongolian native herb is an old soul when it comes to medicinal use. It features in many Classical Chinese medicine formulae as a Qi (energy) restoration medicine, often used in combination with warming herbs to fight viral infections like influenza. First documented in the classic Chinese medicine text the Ben Cao Gang Mu (Compendium of Materia Medica) it’s one of the 50 foundational herbs in Chinese medicine and it’s highly valued in Western herbal medicine too. Astragalus isn’t just a herb that helps you fight infections though. In order for our immune systems to function well we need our bodies to have good tone and vigour. Herbs like Astragalus nourish our blood, strengthen our vitality (qi) and balance us internally. It’s sweet tasting, which helps us to detoxify and builds up our blood. And it warms out internal landscapes gently, which means we’re better equipped to deal with invasive pathogenic infection that is cold and virulent (like the flu).
Some of the symptoms that Astragalus can relieve in colds and flu are:
- fatigue and lethargy
- shortness of breath
- abnormal sweating tendencies (too much or too little)
- low appetite
- low white blood cell count (immune cells)
- low immune function
- puffiness or water retention
If you have any of the following, it would be best to avoid using Astragalus in this recipe:
- If you’re taking immuno-suppressive medications
- If you have an auto-immune condition
- If you are pregnant (although this is only a small dose so in most instances won’t be an issue at the recommended dosages)
Buy Astragalus at www.australherbs.com.au or head to your nearest Chinese or Asian grocery and buy a small bag which will cost you a few dollars. It will be labeled “Milkvetch” or “Huang Qi”. That said, let’s get started making this yummy syrup!
Astragalus (Sze, 2023)
Sourcing herbal ingredients
All of the herbs used in this recipe can be purchased at www.australherbs.com.au. Especially Elderberries, Licorice root, Astragalus and Marshmallow root. You can buy Cinnamon, Honey, Cloves and Oranges at your local supermarket.
In addition, you can find Licorice (Glycyrrhiza glabra or ‘Gan Cao’), Astragalus (Milkvetch or ‘Huang Qi’) in Asian groceries easily. Clove, Cinnamon can be found in supermarkets and you can use your own fresh orange peel.
If you’re short on just one herb, feel free to omit it or substitute with another similar herb:
- you can omit Elderberries or replace with dried blueberries
- you can omit Astragalus or replace with double the amount of fresh Ginger
- you can omit either Licorice root or Marshmallow root, but try to keep one of them in
- also….you can omit the glycerine and replace with honey
Part 1 ~ Making the Vinegar Syrup
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To make the vinegar, put your 3 cups of frozen cherries and blackberries in a glass bowl and cover with organic apple cider vinegar. You can substitute with raspberries if you prefer. Always use frozen, it’s much more economical and more likely you’ll have some stock in the freezer when you need it down the track. Also fruits like this are frozen straight after picking so they’re not sitting in transportation for hours in the heat. You’ll use around 400mL apple cider vinegar but you only need 250mL infused vinegar liquid at the end.
Leave this sitting on the kitchen bench overnight (12hrs+) covered with cling wrap. If it’s warm weather you might like to use a fork to punch a few breathing holes into the cling wrap. By morning it’ll be a rich, red colour. Perfect, you’re ready to go!
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Strain the berry vinegar (you’ll yield around 250mL), then combine with sugar in a pot and warm on medium heat until the sugar is dissolved. It’s a good idea to stir it often so that you don’t overcook it, as soon as the sugar is dissolved, the vinegar syrup is ready. Set aside.
Part 2 ~ Making the Honey Syrup
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While your vinegar syrup is warming, measure out the herbs for your honey syrup and place all (except the cloves) into a fresh pot. Add 600mL water and bring to a gentle simmer. While its simmering, grind your cloves in a mortar and pestle roughly, they don’t need to be a powder. If you don’t have a mortar and pestle you can use them whole.
The herbs in this syrup are immune fortifying and will assist with recovery from colds. Astragalus (Astragalus membranaceus), Cinnamon (Cinnamomum zeylanicum) and Orange Peel (Citrus sinensis) are warming and drying in nature, perfect to offset the cold and damp of flu and viral infections in winter. They also boost your circulation so that you can better fight and remove the infection, while keeping your upper body warm which directly helps your immune system fight off inhaled infections. This is coming from the Chinese medicine perspective. Then there’s Marshmallow Root (Althaea officinalis) and Licorice Root (Glycyrrhiza glabra) to coat and soothe your mucous membranes, where most of the immune fighting action occurs. Being demulcent in nature they help restore your mucousal membrane health while also being sticky to allow the medicinal ingredients to sit on these surfaces longer, boosting your recovery and immune response.
Straining the cherry and blackberry vinegar (Sze, 2023)
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After simmering, strain out the herbal decoction (that’s what you call it once you’ve simmered the herbs for around 25minutes) and you’ll yield around 250mL. If you have less than this, top it up with boiled water to make the 250mL. Stir in the honey and glycerine while its still hot.
- You can use just honey if you prefer (i.e 250g honey, rather than 200g honey + 50g glycerine). If you need to heat it a little in a pot again, feel free. You want the honey to be dissolved.
And finally, time to combine the two syrups together. Measure out 400mL of the honey syrup and 250mL of the vinegar syrup and mix together. If needed, pop it back on heat to ensure it all liquifies nicely. But this may not be needed if you’re syrup is already flowing like liquid. Any sugary deposits or lumps should be melted out.
~ Ideal proportions for your final syrup are:
.400mL honey syrup + 250mL vinegar syrup.
(Sze, 2023)
Cherry & Blackberry Herbal Cough Syrup
Equipment
- 1 Glass bowl
- 1 Pot
- 1 Mortar and Pestle
- 1 Measuring Scales (1g increments)
Ingredients
Vinegar Syrup
- 2 cups frozen Cherries
- 1 cup frozen Blackberries can substitute the cherries and blackberries with raspberries or blueberries
- 300-400 mL organic Apple Cider Vinegar
- 250 g raw, low GI sugar
Honey Syrup
- 10 g organic dried Elderberries
- 10 g orange peel the orange outer skin of oranges
- 10 g Marshmallow root (Althaea officinalis)
- 8 g Astragalus root
- 8 g Cinnamon either powder or chips or strips
- 8 g Cloves roughly ground in mortar and pestle
- 8 g Licorice root
- 600 mL Water room temperature is fine
- 200 g Honey for the honey syrup
- 50 g Glycerine for the honey syrup, can substitute with 50g honey if you prefer
Instructions
- First make the vinegar by adding cherries and blackberries to apple cider vinegar in a glass bowl. Leave over night and strain the next morning. You'll yield around 250mL.
- Add to a pot with the low GI sugar and warm until the sugar is fully dissolved. Set aside.
- Now make the honey syrup by adding herbs (except the Clove) to a pot, add water and bring to a gentle simmer on medium heat. Simmer the herbs for 20 minutes. While this is happening, grind the Cloves in the mortar and pestle. Throw them in once the simmer is complete, and leave this mixture for 15 minutes, covered.
- Strain the honey syrup and you'll yield around 250mL. If it's less, top it up with hot boiled water. Stir in the honey and glycerine while it's still hot. If you need to heat it again in the pot to make sure everyhting is dissolved, go for it. But you probably won't need to.
- Measure out 250mL of the vinegar syrup and combine with 400mL of the honey syrup. Voila! Your syrup is ready.
- Bottle the syrup in glass with a plastic lid and store in the fridge for up to 6 months.
- Use 30mL4-5 times daily when unwell for medicinal benefits. You can drink it straight or add it to honey, lemon and ginger tea.
Best way to store this delicious syrup is in the fridge. Don’t store it in metal containers, glass or plastic are best with the vinegar it contains.
(Sze, 2023)
This is a whole family recipe, so feel free to give to your kids as well. If they’re not used to vinegar they may find that strong, but usually it goes down well. It’s more suited to relieving cold and cough symptoms rather than acting as a preventive, so best to keep it for when you’re not feeling well. Dosage is 30mL per dose and you can take it 4 to 5 times daily. It’s also really nice warm, so you can add it to warm drinks or add a little hot boiled water, very yummy.
Hey there! Welcome to my world of totally natural and powerful healing medicines. Medicines from nature. Medicine from Source. I’m a naturopath and herbalist with extensive clinical experience working with a range of health conditions including hormonal, metabolic, mental health, sleep and more.
I’ve brought together years of clinical and teaching experience, academic skill and curiosity to bring you this blog. I hope you enjoy it! If you do, leave a comment, I’d love to hear from you!
