Red date and longan tea (紅棗桂圓茶)
A naturally sweet, warming drink of red dates and dried longan, simmered with a little ginger — no added sugar needed.
- Prep
- 5 min
- Cook
- 30 min
- Serves
- 2
Method
- 1
Rinse the red dates and longan.
- 2
Simmer. Put them in a pan with the water (and ginger, if using), bring to the boil, then cover and simmer for 25 minutes.
- 3
Add the goji berries for the last 5 minutes. Taste — the fruit is usually sweet enough without sugar — and serve warm.
About this dish
A gentle, fragrant drink that a 陪月 will often have simmering through the day. Red dates and longan give it a natural, caramel-like sweetness, so there's no need to add sugar.
Tips
- Eat the fruit too — the softened dates and longan are the best part.
- Make a pot in the morning and keep it in the fridge, reheating a cup at a time, rather than keeping it warm in a flask all day. Drink it the same day.
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.
Find a carer →More recipes
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