Brown sugar ginger tea (紅糖薑茶)
A quick, warming drink of fresh ginger simmered with Chinese brown sugar and red dates — a confinement staple, and a comfort on a cold UK day.
- Prep
- 5 min
- Cook
- 20 min
- Serves
- 2
Method
- 1
Simmer the ginger. Lightly smash the ginger slices and put them in a pan with the water and red dates. Bring to the boil and simmer for 15 minutes.
- 2
Add the sugar and stir until it dissolves, then simmer for 2 minutes more.
- 3
Strain into cups and serve warm.
About this dish
Brown sugar and ginger are both traditionally considered "warming", and a cup of 紅糖薑茶 is one of the simplest things a 陪月 makes — often first thing in the morning or after a bath.
Tips
- Mind the sugar. Each cup has about 15g of sugar. The NHS recommends adults have no more than 30g of free sugars a day, so use less sugar if you're having it often — and talk to your midwife or GP if you had gestational diabetes.
- Stronger or milder: simmer the ginger longer for more heat, or use less ginger if it gives you heartburn.
- Chinese brown sugar slabs (片糖) are sold in Chinese supermarkets; dark muscovado is a good substitute.
Sources
About these recipes
- These are traditional home recipes, shared for cultural interest. They are not medical or nutritional advice, and we don’t claim any dish treats, prevents or cures anything.
- If you have allergies, gestational diabetes or a special diet, or take any medicines or herbal remedies, check with your midwife, health visitor, GP or pharmacist before changing what you eat.
- Follow UK food-safety advice: cook meat, fish and eggs thoroughly; cool leftovers and get them into the fridge within 1 to 2 hours; eat them within 2 days; and reheat only once, until steaming hot.
- Some recipes contain alcohol, and cooking doesn’t remove all of it. If you’re breastfeeding, read our guide to ginger vinegar and chicken in rice wine first.
Experienced carers cook dishes like these every day of the confinement month, and adjust them to how you’re feeling.
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