Lemongrass & Palm Sugar Drink

Sorry for the lack of posts. It's not that I have not been making soups but life and business intervened. Business, clients, family, life.

Whenever I get tired or bored, I'd head to the kitchen. I'll try a new recipe and a lot of people find cooking tedious (especially in my case when it's just my husband and me). Some people ask me, "Isn't it far easier to head out to the hawker stalls or a coffeeshop and get dinner over and done with?"

After all, I am living in Penang. The island with the most lipsmackingly delicious street food.

I admit that cooking small portions can be tedious BUT as I said, cooking and tinkering in the kitchen is my escape from a world that gets too hectic (at least for me).

Cooking and gardening are my escapes.

So this blog post is inspired by what's growing in my tiny patch of garden.

I've been growing serai or lemongrass in a pot in my garden. It's been thriving happily. But at times I forget to use the serai in my cooking (or rather I have not been cooking dishes which need serai!) so the serai grows and grows.

Serai is so easy to grow - it needs water and plenty of sunshine. It tolerates neglect well and you don't need to do any trimming except if you want to cut or dig some stalks out. Be careful though when you're digging serai as the leaves can be sharp. I always wear gardening gloves when I am pulling out serai.

One day I thought I should get some lemongrass to make a beverage. I don't cook with it but at least I could make a drink out of it.

So I did. And it is refreshing on a humid day.

Lemongrass stalks and palm sugar - 2 simple ingredients for a healthy Asian beverage

All you need are a few stalks of serai or lemongrass and some gula melaka or palm sugar. Bring about 1 liter of water to boil and add the sliced up stalks of lemongrass. Add about 100gm of palm sugar and let the whole concoction simmer for 20 minutes on low heat, covered.

You can drink it warm or you can store the excess in the fridge. I prefer mine chilled as it is lovely and refreshing. You can adjust the amount of sugar depending on how sweet you like your beverages.

Besides being a lovely fragrant drink (and much better than Coca Cola or any other fizzy drinks), lemongrass has a host of health benefits.

It's actually strange that we only use the white parts (near the roots) of the lemongrass and technically no leaves of the plant is used. I once saw Martin Yan, that famous Chinese chef on TV, do the unthinkable on one of his cooking shows. He sliced up the green leafy bits of the lemon grass instead of using the white stalks! Even chefs get it wrong!

WedMD notes that lemongrass is useful for "digestive tract spasms, stomachache, high blood pressure, convulsions, pain, vomiting, cough, achy joints (rheumatism), fever, common cold, and exhaustion. It is also used to kill germs and as a mild astringent."

It goes on to say that lemongrass might help to "prevent the growth of some bacteria and yeast. Lemongrass also contains substances that are thought to relieve pain, reduce fever, stimulate the uterus and menstrual flow, and have antioxidant properties."

I do know that drinking this lemongrass beverage made me pee a whole lot more. It was probably flushing out my kidneys.

The other effect I felt was that my menstruation cramps were reduced when I had my period (I drank the beverage about 2-3 times a week BEFORE my period. I don't recommend drinking cold drinks when you're having your period. Call me utterly traditional but I believe cold drinks as well as cold baths are no-no's if you want to preserve health.)

If you can get it, lemongrass liniment or oil is good for massage and muscle pain. I have a bottle of lemongrass oil for those aches and pains that sometimes assail me if I've been hunched over the laptop too long.

Do not confuse lemongrass or serai with the other mosquito-busting plant from the same family. Both look the same - long and tall grass-like leaves. I have both plants in my garden.

I also read that lemongrass is good for getting rid of uric acid as well as excess fats and toxins. Plus because it's so good at detoxification, if you have problem skin with acne, drinking lemongrass will help you clear the skin issues up.

And finally, everyone loves a herb that helps battle cancer - yeah, lemongrass contains anti-cancer properties.

So there you have it - the wonders of lemongrass in a drink that's far healthier than guzzling Coke.

Goji Berry, Chrysanthemum & Red Date Tea

I've been making this simple tea for a few times already. Not sure if I had shared this before but all it needs are 3 ingredients - dried goji berries, dried red dates and dried chrysanthemum bulbs. This sugar-less concoction is good for health especially if you want to maintain immunity. It's even more important these days what with the pandemic and Covid-19. But it is also a pleasant brew - no boiling needed. All you need is a handful of goji berries (washed and soaked for 5 minutes in water), 3-5 large dried red dates and a teaspoon of dried chrysanthemum flowers (these are the small heads of flowers, not the usual type for making chrysanthemum tea). Put all the ingredients in a teapot and pour in boiling water. Let it sit for 10 minutes and voila, you have made yourself a healthy tea without sugar. It has a natural sweetness from the red dates and goji berries. And once you have drunk all the tea, you can continue adding more boiling water for a second b...

The Remarkable Nut of Nuts

In this recipe, walnuts and dried red dates are combined to make a healthy and life-giving dessert. And with honey added, it packs a punch. A truly simple dessert which is used to prevent the usual flu magnets - colds and coughs. It helps too with your kidneys and with bowel movement. Walnuts are much revered in Chinese medicine, not least because the nut resembles the brain! Again, the Chinese believe that walnuts are good snacks for children as they help boost brain power which is true because of the high amounts of Omega 3 fats (good for the brain). Walnuts are of course a good source of essential omega-3 fatty acids and in Roman times, considered the food of the gods. Walnuts are a 'yang' tonic and useful for toning up weak kidneys. It also warms lung Qi while acting as a laxative, moistening the intestines (hence encouraging bowel movement if you are constipated). Walnuts are called Hu Tao Ren (juglans regia) in Chinese medicine. Walnut & Red Date Dessert 150 gm walnut...

Corn Silk That You Should Never Throw Away

The next time you buy fresh corn still in its husk, you should never throw away the corn silk. Most people throw away the husk and silk, thinking that they're useless but I can tell you, corn silk is great for your body. Save the corn silk to make a healthy tea. Just place all the silk into a pot, cover with 500ml of water and simmer for 10 minutes on low heat. Turn off the heat and pour yourself a steaming cup of sweetish corn silk tea that tastes a little like corn. Corn silk or Yu Mi Xu is a natural corn fibre that is also used in Native American medicine. It contains flavonoids that give corn silks their colour and have antioxidant properties. I t is considered an important medicinal plant, able to induce diuresis and excrete dampness according to TCM. Corn silk is helpful towards Kidney, Bladder, Liver and Gall Bladder. meridians Therefore it clears damp heat, bloating, rheumatism, skin eruptions, gout, wasting and thirsting disorder, hepatitis, cholelithiasis, ch...

The Soup Queen

Search This Blog