Fire Cider for Seasonal Wellness

I happened upon Fire Cider accidentally. A friend of mine and I went up to north Georgia to go hike Yonah Mountain and as soon as we emerged from our car in the parking lot at the trail head the sky opened up on us!

Photo Credit: “Cliffs on Yonah Mountain” by TranceMist, CC BY 2.0

Yonah Mountain is steep and rocky and not conducive to hiking in the rain - although we did see some hard-core hikers donning their rain gear!

So we headed into Helen, GA - a very touristy town built to emulate an alpine Bavarian village. It was nearby and we wanted a hot beverage and to get out of the rain. We found it to be very congested with traffic and pedestrians wandering about but we did finally locate a large parking lot behind a shopping strip on the main drag and decided to park and walk (like everybody else in town).

We eventually came upon an apothecary - not just any apothecary, it has a tea room, homemade herbal teas, crystals, in-house crafted CBD tinctures and ointments and Fire Ciders! I had never seen Fire Cider before but they had every flavor they made in a small fridge for tasting. We tasted every one of them and I eventually chose the Hibiscus Fire Cider to purchase.

I wasn't sure how to use it but I knew it was some sort of tonic so I would occasionally put about a tablespoon in a shot glass and top it with sparkling water and shoot it down. It lasted me a couple of months and once I was out of it I realized I wanted more and didn't want to drive up to Helen to get it.

So I looked it up online.

AI claims that fire cider is a term coined in the 70s by herbalist Rosemary Gladstar - a name I recognized because I frequently buy organic herbs for teas and such from Mountain Rose Herbs and she has written articles on their website. Here is one about the fight to 'free fire cider' from trademarking a tradition that had been around for centuries.

Did You Know? Rosemary Gladstar is often called “the godmother of modern herbalism.” Her Fire Cider recipe inspired countless variations worldwide.

She created fire cider with a bunch of budding herbalists during a class on winter wellness in or around 1979-1980. She used known herbal traditions and put in her own inspired ingredients. The basic recipe initially consisted of onions, garlic, ginger, horseradish, cayenne pepper and organic apple cider vinegar with the mother. I found a video of her making fire cider and watched it. She also has a book of 101 fire cider variations!

I love how passionate she is about the healing power of plants! I feel the same.

Plants are powerful medicine — and the kitchen is often the best pharmacy.

So, after gathering all this foundational information, I set out to make my own Fire Cider. The benefits of the tonic come from the chosen ingredients and their healing properties. I wanted a tonic that would be antiviral and antimicrobial and boost immune function and prevent allergies.

Ingredients from My First Two Fire Cider Batches

Here is a list of my chosen ingredients for my first two batches:

• Onions - antimicrobial, anti-inflammatory, immune support

• Garlic - same as onions, also lower cholesterol

• Horseradish - respiratory health and circulatory health

• Ginger - anti-inflammatory, digestive support, circulation and immune support

• Turmeric - anti-inflammatory

• Elderberries - immune and antioxidant support

• Lemon/orange slices - vitamin C - a powerful antioxidant

• Jalepeno peppers - capsaicin for pain relief, boost metabolism and immune support

• Cayenne pepper - same as jalepeno peppers, also support heart health

• Batch 1 - Hibiscus

• Batch 2 - Nettle leaf

I found a great article with a summary of some of the medicinal properties here.

I chose hibiscus for the antioxidant content. It is also supposed to help lower cholesterol - which we all need in our stress filled lives! Many of my patients hear this from me - your LDL cholesterol goes up when you experience any kind of stress (good or bad) because it is the basic building block for cortisol - your main 'dealing with stress' hormone. There are also ways to assess your cholesterol other than the basic lipid panel your PCP orders that can help you determine if the elevated LDL is a concern.

I chose nettle leaf because it helps prevent allergies/allergic response to stimuli in the environment. It also is anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and calms arthritis. Here is a great article on all of nettle leaf's awesome properties.

Dr. Miller’s Recommended Fire Starter Recipe

So, I'm about to make batch numbers 3 and 4. If you want to make some, you will need a large glass jar (I'm using a leftover jar that I got which originally contained cacao nibs - it holds almost 32 oz of liquid).

Ingredients

You will also need:

• enough apple cider vinegar - ACV- (organic, with the mother) to cover all of the ingredients to about 1 inch above the level of solids in the jar

• 1/2 cup chopped organic onions

• 1/4 cup chopped organic garlic

• 1/2 cup grated organic horseradish root

• 1/4 cup grated organic ginger

• one medium to large organic jalepeno pepper, chopped

• organic cayenne pepper to taste - 1/4 - 1 tsp, depending on your tolerance for spice

Optional Add-Ins:

• Organic elderberries (I used freeze-dried and boiled them in a bit of filtered water and add the boiled berries with a little bit of juice and made syrup with the leftover juice)

• Organic lemon and/or orange slices (some recipes just use the juice and zest)

• Organic hibiscus tea (loose or open the bag - I used Buddha teas or Traditional Medicinals teas)

• Nettle leaf tea, burdock root or burdock root tea,

• Organic rosemary and/or thyme.

I have organic rosemary and thyme growing in my garden so I plan to put those in this time. I also have organic burdock root tea, so I'll try that as well.

Once you've gathered all your ingredients, you can begin! Make sure the jar is clean and if it has a metal lid (which most do), you will need a piece of parchment paper to place on top of the jar after adding the ACV.

Elderberries are packed with antioxidants and support immune resilience through the colder months, making them one of nature’s most potent protectors!

To Prepare:

1. Chop the aromatics and place them in the jar.

2. Add in any optional ingredients you’d like.

3. Pour the apple cider vinegar (ACV) over the solids until there is at least one inch of liquid above them (you can add more if desired).

4. Cover the jar with the parchment paper and screw on the lid.

5. Shake the jar every day or every other day for about 4 weeks.

To Strain and Finish:

After 4 weeks, it’s time to decant your tonic.

You will need:

• A stainless steel bowl large enough to hold the liquid

• A mesh strainer lined with cheesecloth

• Raw, local honey

1. Place the strainer over the bowl and pour the contents of the jar through it.

2. Gather the corners of the cheesecloth and squeeze out the remaining liquid from the solids.

3. Gently heat the honey in a double boiler (I place the glass jar in a pan of hot water).

4. Pour the warm honey into the Fire Cider liquid and stir to blend thoroughly.

I used about 1/3 cup of honey for roughly 4 cups of liquid — you can use more or less to taste.

Take a tablespoon, mix with sparkling water, and try it. If it’s too “sharp,” add more honey.

Note: Don’t boil the honey or use the microwave — this will destroy its beneficial enzymes and nutrients.

To Bottle:

I washed out the 32-ounce bottle from the organic ACV I used to make the Fire Cider and used a funnel to pour the new elderberry batch into that jar and a few smaller containers — one was a tall handcrafted vinegar bottle, another was the original glass jar from my first Fire Cider in north Georgia.

I also repurposed a large glass kombucha jar to hold extra Fire Cider.

So, if you want to support your immune health, heart, respiratory and circulatory health, plus fight off viruses common in the coming winter months, make yourself a batch of fire cider! I also noticed my blood sugar is better and I've lost weight (although I did also start doing yoga 3 times a week)!

For more ways to support your health through every season, visit the Miller Functional Medicine Consulting website to learn about our functional medicine services.

P.S. The Fire Cider in the photo was from a jar I got at the Alpharetta Farmers Market when I was waiting for mine to be done brewing. She uses a lot more honey than I do, so I've mixed it with organic olive oil to make a very bodacious (and healthy) salad dressing. Yummy!

Til next time - stay warm, nourished and support your immune system with fire cider!

Best health,

Dr. KM