Fire Cider is no longer cool, it’s fire

I used to tell people that I’m into natural, whole foods and home remedies because I’m a hippie. But I’ve recently been corrected by the Dreamy One, now it’s crunchy (if I want to farm my aura and slangmog my middle-aged friends, I need to say crunchy). So, to make sure I don’t fail my vibe check, I’ll use crunchy.

One of the crunchiest things I do is make Fire Cider. Now, I’m not a doctor and certainly not giving anyone medical advice, but I wouldn’t want to go through a fall/winter without a batch of fire cider brewed in the pantry. We tend to mix a few tablespoons into steaming hot water with some raw honey in the evenings throughout the cool weather season. We don’t necessarily wait for the sniffles to start. In fact, I’m not one to get a lot of colds. Not sure if that’s the fire cider or just a well-exercised immune system from living in a barn with animals everywhere…

What Is Fire Cider?

What is it? – well, it’s apple cider vinegar with a whole bunch of stuff thrown in. I love making fire cider this time of year because there are still some stragglers coming out of the garden that I don’t want to waste. In our house, we take a gallon jar and start loading it up with healing foods. I start with onions cut into large sections, then oranges and/or lemons, smashed cloves of garlic, cinnamon sticks, the hot peppers that are still coming out of the garden (jalapeños and habaneros). Usually I have some herbs in the garden that are leggy and woody and have flowered, but they still work in here, so I throw in sprigs of rosemary and thyme. But the stars of the show for me are ginger and turmeric. I slice the ginger and turmeric and I usually do a big batch so that I can dehydrate a bunch of slices for just tea too. Once the jar is loaded up, I pour raw apple cider vinegar in until everything is covered. Put the lid on and let it sit. Like for several weeks.

Now this is a very forgiving process and nothing has to be exact. Made the way I describe above, it is hot and tangy and, in my non-doctor experience, clears the sinuses! But you don’t drink it straight! Most people strain it after 4-6 weeks and add raw honey. Sometimes we strain it all at once, sometimes we don’t. Sometimes we add some honey, sometimes we don’t. We usually dilute it with hot water and drink it like a tea. When anyone on the farm is feeling puny or stuffy, we give them a hot cup of fire cider. The reactions are extreme – no one seems neutral about it. They either love it and brag about how they handled the heat or they hate it and act dramatic about having to choke it down. Either way, it’s fun to watch them drink it! And having a big jar of gorgeous fire cider sitting on the counter maxxes my crunchycore aesthetic!

Fire Cider Recipe

Makes: one gallon jar. Use any size jar and scale it down. Everything just has to be covered.
Brew time: at least 4 weeks

Ingredients

• 1 onion, cut into large sections
• 1 orange, sliced
• 1 large lemon, sliced
• 1 head of garlic, cloves smashed
• 2 inches fresh ginger, sliced
• 2 inches fresh turmeric, sliced
• 5 cinnamon sticks
• A few sprigs of rosemary and thyme
• 5 jalapeños and 2 habaneros (use fewer if you’re nervous, or more if you’re feeling brave)
• Raw apple cider vinegar, about half a gallon, enough to cover everything
• Raw honey, for serving

Steps

1. Wear gloves to cut the peppers, especially the habaneros.
2. Load the jar with everything except the vinegar and honey.
3. Pour in raw apple cider vinegar until everything is completely covered. Keep it submerged, because anything poking above the vinegar can mold.
4. Put parchment paper or plastic wrap between the jar and a metal lid, since vinegar corrodes metal. Put the lid on.
5. Shake it a few times at the start. After that, shake it whenever you think of it.
6. Keep it on a shelf out of direct sun for at least 4 weeks.
7. Strain out the solids (optional, but I usually do) and store the liquid in a clean jar.

To drink

Stir 2 tablespoons of fire cider and 1 tablespoon of raw honey into 6 ounces of hot water. Adjust to taste.

Storage

Strained fire cider keeps for up to a year on the shelf. If it ever smells or looks off, throw it out.

This is not medical advice. Talk to your doctor if you’re pregnant, take medication, or have a health condition. Don’t give raw honey to children under one.