Fire cider

I have to admit that until last year, I was unaware of fire cider. However, as soon as I learned  its ingredients, it made complete sense that this is a powerful tool in the fight against colds during the autumn and winter. So, with our abrupt transition from summer to autumn in full swing in the UK, it was time to make some fire cider this weekend.

It really couldn’t be simpler – all you need to do is finely chop or grate the ingredients, add them to a jar, cover with apple cider vinegar and wait to let the magic do its thing…

Ingredients – there are a lot of fire cider recipes out there. I used:

• 1 red onion, finely chopped
• 8 cloves of garlic, thinly sliced
• 1 red chilli, thinly sliced
• 1/2 cup horseradish, peeled and grated
• 1/2 cup ginger, grated
• 2 tbsp turmeric, thinly sliced (you could grate if you don’t mind having yellow fingers) – or use 2 tsp ground turmeric
• 1 lemon, zest and juice
• 3-4 sprigs of rosemary
• 500ml apple cider vinegar (look for the words ‘raw’ or ‘with mother’ on the bottle)
• 2 tbsp honey

Prepare all the ingredients and add to a large glass jar. Pour over the apple cider vinegar, ensuring that the top of the spices is covered. If not, add a little more. Shake or stir.

Weigh the contents down to make sure they remain covered – you may have to get creative for this! I used a small glass ramekin with a stone inside 😉

Keep in a dark, cool place and shake or stir daily for 4-6 weeks. Then strain, wringing all the liquid out of the solids, add the honey and transfer to a bottle.

You can either drink a neat shot, add a couple of tablespoons to some warm water and honey, add to a (virgin) Bloody Mary – whichever you prefer. Take at the first sign of a cold.