Tea when sick

[LeoFox]

I got hit with some respiratory bug that has left me so congested I can taste and smell nothing! Good news is that Covid test was negative.

Anyways, I've been trying to find a concoction that would clear my sinuses and warm me up.
This one I tried today was interesting:
Crushed long pepper, ceylon cinnamon, ceylon black tea, fresh ginger slices.

For those who dont know what long pepper is:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Long_pepper

[karma]

how'd it work? hope ya feel better

[LeoFox]

how'd it work? hope ya feel better

Thank you

No idea how it tastes since I taste nothing but it was definitely warming! Also after a few infusions- my nose started to clear up after several days of breathing only through my mouth!

[aet]

white tea works for me though. Sometimes will add an orange peel ( cheng pi ) .

[BriarOcelot]

white tea works for me though. Sometimes will add an orange peel ( cheng pi ) .

Best wishes for fast improvement.

This always seems to be the recommendation via my mother too - specifically boiled white tea with cheng pi.

Sometimes she'd add some lemongrass/ginger... but mostly just white tea and orange peel.

In India, we got given some bright yellow ginger/turmeric chai for colds, lots of fresh black pepper.

[debunix]

I adore long pepper, and have often used it in baking, but never thought to use it in tea. I'll have to keep this in mind for my next congestion-relieving tea.

[wave_code]

I tend to reach for TGY when I have a cold - it warmig and, the roast and slight sourness still tend to cut through when I can't taste anything. That or also chenpi/citrus stuffed teas. I also reach for this one when I'm sick since it is a nice sort of combination of both along with some herbs, and you can just simmer or re-brew it all day long- https://www.tealifehk.com/products/2012 ... g-tea-100g

[LeoFox]

I tried something slightly different today, now my taste is returning to me (maybe 30% of it).
Ginger slices + black pepper corns + vietnamese handmade oolong. Was very nice.

[debunix]

I just I am coming back to report that today's tea for a sniffle and sore throat (thank goodness Covid negative) with lemon, ginger, honey, rosemary, and long pepper his delicious. Long pepper as a very nice little bit of bite.

[LeoFox]

I just I am coming back to report that today's tea for a sniffle and sore throat (thank goodness Covid negative) with lemon, ginger, honey, rosemary, and long pepper his delicious. Long pepper as a very nice little bit of bite.

I like it

[i_viter]

Any red tea/puerh (preferably aged shou or semi-aged sheng) + ginger + pinch of pepper and turmeric powder works very good for me when I feel that I'm about to get sick.
I have a liter or about of this spiced tea paired with wild honey in the evening and then I feel much better in the morning.
Proved it many times=)

Hope you're feeling well now, LeoFox

[LeoFox]

Any red tea/puerh (preferably aged shou or semi-aged sheng) + ginger + pinch of pepper and turmeric powder works very good for me when I feel that I'm about to get sick.
I have a liter or about of this spiced tea paired with wild honey in the evening and then I feel much better in the morning.
Proved it many times=)

Hope you're feeling well now, LeoFox

Thanks! I am now sick every 2 weeks because my child brings back the viruses from daycare, hahaha. So I am still sick but at least this time, my sense of taste was spared.

[faj]

Thanks! I am now sick every 2 weeks because my child brings back the viruses from daycare, hahaha. So I am still sick but at least this time, my sense of taste was spared.

My kids are now all teenagers, and the last couple of months have reminded us of how things were when they were younger, so I sure know what you mean. With the pandemic having reduced transmission of common viruses for a year and a half, it seems this fall they were back with a vengeance. Tissues have been in high demand in the house...

[wave_code]

Nobody has mentioned Kam Wo so far, so thought I would throw it out there. Kam Wo is made, or was made, by Yuen Kut Lam, a long running family business based out of Hong Kong and uses 28 different herbal ingredients and a lot of processing, so not really 'tea' but more a TCM brew. Supposedly the recipe was developed during Qing dynasty by the son of a wealthy merchant family who had an interest in TCM, and the tea was intentionally sold cheaply to be able to serve as medicine for flu for those who wouldn't otherwise have access. Apparently at some point there was some sort of large family infighting over the business/money and or sale of the recipe and I think they may have gone bankrupt. I've seen what are supposedly Kam Wo boxes that people have said are bootlegs and not the same with slightly different packaging, so I have no idea what the current status of the availability of the genuine article is.

[Balthazar]

On the topic of (presently based in) Hong Kong herbal remedies, I've found a liberal spoonful of Nin Jiom Pei Pa Koa to go well with a bowl of strongly boiled ginger on days when my throat is really bad.

As for actual tea, I usually reach for ones that I perceive as especially clean (but not too green!) when I am sick. Roasted Taiwanese oolongs and certain heizhuans are often chosen. A bit surprisingly (since it seems like many people like to drink shu when they are feeling under the weather), I rarely go for anything with heavy fermentation.