Lemon grass is known for its medicinal properties.
Lemon grass is known for its sweet, citrus fragrance. While the tall perennial grass is native to India, it is most commonly associated with East Asian cuisine. Not only is it used for its flavoring in food, lemon grass extract's medicinal properties also help in detoxifying the body, promoting digestion, improving blood pressure and reducing inflammation. Alcohol or water extraction can be used to remove the juices and oils from lemon grass.
Instructions
Alcohol
1. Wash the lemon grass stalks thoroughly with cold water. Cut only the hardened tips off the stalks. Chop the stalks into small pieces. Fill a clean jar halfway with lemon grass pieces. Using a one-to-one ratio, fill the jar the rest of the way with either vodka, gin or brandy and water.
2. Ensure that all of the stalk pieces are covered completely with liquid. Cover the jar with its lid and shake gently. Place the concoction in a dark, dry location and allow it to sit for at least one week.
3. Place a cheesecloth in a colander and put the colander in a large bowl. Pour the mixture from the jar onto the cheesecloth to remove the liquid from the plant material. Ball the cheesecloth around the plant material and squeeze excess liquid from the cloth.
4. Store the lemon grass extract in a clean jar until ready to use. The extract can be added to hot water to create lemon grass tea.
Water
5. Wash the lemon grass in cold water and cut off the very tips of the stalks. Chop the stalks into small pieces. Fill a clean jar halfway with the plant pieces.
6. Fill the rest of the jar with boiling water. Cover the jar with its lid and shake gently. Allow the concoction to steep for one to eight hours, depending on the potency you desire.
7. Strain the lemon grass pieces from the liquid using a colander and cheesecloth. Add sweetener to the concoction and drink hot or cold.
Tags: lemon grass, pieces Fill, with shake gently, Chop stalks, Chop stalks into, clean halfway