Soothing flax seed tea.
The boy was sick this past weekend, and I was reminded about the lovely soothing properties of flax seed tea (Linum usitatissimum).
Flax is a classic demulcent. The seeds are rich in mucilage, like marshmallow or slippery elm. But flax isn’t so cooling as marshmallow or threatened in the wild like slippery elm.
Flax seed tea is amazing for soothing irritated mucous membranes. Think raw: sore throat; esophagus irritated from vomiting; “irritable bowel syndrome”; lungs irritated from coughing; kidneys and bladder irritated from passing stones.
Its neutral “temperature” makes flax tea good for all sorts of people, including those with constitutions on the cool side. It tastes especially nice with a pinch of warming cinnamon.
The way I make it, it’s really a decoction rather than a tea. Here’s what I do:
Put flax seeds in a small pot with 1 cup of water per teaspoon of seeds.
Simmer gently until the liquid is reduced by half.
Drink hot. (If you let it cool, it will be the texture of raw egg white.)
You can add honey if you like, or warming spices if they’re indicated. But I like the mildly nutty taste of the plain tea.
Next: flax tea as a beauty aid. (They don’t call it usitatissimum for nothing!)
Rie142 said,
November 2, 2007 @ 10:22 am
This tea sounds lovely. I did have a question Do you use the seeds whole or do you crush them first?
crabappleherbs said,
November 2, 2007 @ 2:50 pm
Thanks! I use the seeds whole. If you crushed them, you might be able to brew them as a traditional tea (rather than a decoction). But I don’t know if that would get you all the nice mucilage that the decoction does.
Kiva Rose said,
November 3, 2007 @ 8:33 pm
Great recipe, I’ve been posting the link to the recipe and there for other people to check out.
crabappleherbs said,
November 5, 2007 @ 11:07 am
Thanks Kiva!
The Herbwife’s Kitchen » Old-fashioned flax hair gel. said,
November 5, 2007 @ 5:09 pm
[...] Remember the flax seed tea? [...]
Elizabeth said,
November 14, 2007 @ 8:06 am
The recipe for the flax seed tea came right on time.
I made it yesterday and it works well.
Thank you for this wonderful recipe. I will also pass it on.
crabappleherbs said,
November 14, 2007 @ 10:10 am
Thanks, Elizabeth.
Michelle P said,
April 2, 2008 @ 11:23 am
I remembered reading about his tea. My mom is very sick w/ flu so I am making this for her today. She doesn’t like to take any medications so she will be happy for a natural remedy. Thanks for the nice post!
Michelle P
crabappleherbs said,
April 3, 2008 @ 4:15 pm
You’re welcome! I hope your mom feels better.
Marjetta said,
May 5, 2008 @ 9:37 pm
Good infor, do you drink the seeds also? thanks
crabappleherbs said,
May 6, 2008 @ 10:19 am
Hi Marjetta. I usually strain out the seeds — you could try eating them, though, if you wanted to. You could bake with them, too.
I. said,
April 12, 2009 @ 8:58 pm
I like this tea so much, i have it 2/3x’s per day…is this too much?
crabappleherbs said,
April 14, 2009 @ 9:39 am
No, I don’t think there’s anything wrong with drinking lots of flax tea if it feels right. Flax is a food, after all — a food that people have been eating for a very long time now.
brenda martin said,
June 7, 2009 @ 1:50 pm
Hi,
Can I use ground flax seeds to make the tea? Thanks.