Fresh Turmeric and Ginger-Infused Honey

victoria ward
5 days ago
3 min read

ground turmeric in a metal bowl with a metal spoon surrounded by roots of turmeric — Beautiful Turmeric

Create a beautiful and vibrant-looking honey infused with fresh Turmeric and Ginger rhizomes. Follow my recipe for a highly aromatic, super-healthy and gut health game-changing infusion. There are many ways to use this Turmeric and Ginger-infused Honey, including as a medicinal formulation and as very tasty culinary ingredient and marinade.

The Health Benefits of Turmeric, Ginger and Honey

These three superfoods stand alone as health heroes, packed full of nutrients, potent medicinal compounds and gut health benefits. When the three are combined together with the addition of black pepper to boost bioavailablilty, the synergistic super-charge is undeniably a powerful biohack.

Turmeric

Turmeric (Curcuma longa) is a well-recognised super food that has become increasingly popular over recent years. Most of the many studies looking at Turmeric have focused on the compound Curcumin which the polyphenol pigment responsible for the striking colour of the Turmeric rhizome. Curcumin has been found to be a potent medicinal phytochemical.

Curcumin Health Benefits-

Antioxidant
Antitumour
Anti-inflammatory
Neuroprotective
Hepatoprotective
Cardioprotective

Turmeric is one of the most studied medicinal plants which has a long history of use in traditional Asian medicine including Ayurveda and Traditional Chinese Medicine. This aromatic spice is an integral ingredient in Asian cookery, often used to colour dishes as anyone knows who handles it, Turmeric is a persistent and powerful dye.

The isolation of curcumin first occurred in 1815 and it has been significantly studied ever since, more so than any other molecule isolated from plants. One finding has been the very poor bioavailability of curcumin when given to humans, it has been found that very large doses are required to gain any of the many health benefits.

Piperine, a compound found in Black Pepper (Piper nigrum) has been found to increase the bioavailability of all nutrients, it increases bioavailabiliy of curcumin 2,000%.

Turmeric and Gut Health

Turmeric can help reduce gut inflammation and heal gut lining, it also helps to modulate the microbiota by regulating microbial diversity and abundance of beneficial species.

Ginger

Ginger Health Benefits

Anti-inflammatory
Antioxidant
Anti nausea
Pain relief
Immune-support
Circulatory stimulant

Ginger For Gut Health

Ginger has shown in studies several gut health benefits including-

Promotes beneficial bacterial species
Reduces gut inflammation

Health Benefits of Honey

honey in open jar — Health Benefits of Honey

The health benefits of honey are widely understood, raw honey is packed with antioxidants and polyphenols making it another top super-food.

Actions of Raw Honey

Wound healer
Skin nourisher
Anti-microbial
Immune tonic
Cough reliever
Soothes mucous membranes

Honey And Gut Health

Prebiotic
Antibacterial - promoting healthy gut microbes
Soothing to mucous membranes- relieving gut inflammation

Ginger and Turmeric Honey Recipe

Ingredients

1 jar of raw honey

1 inch piece of fresh ginger rhizome

1 inch piece of fresh turmeric rhizome

1/2 tsp ground black pepper

Method

fresh ginger and turmeric rhizomes on small wooden chopping board — Fresh Ginger and Turmeric Rhizomes

Peel your rhizomes and then grate them both.

freshly grated ginger and turmeric rhizome on a small wooden chopping board — Freshly grated Ginger and Turmeric

My honey is from my own beehives and was collected last summer. Some has set firm so I emptied the whole jar into a double-boiler to liquefy.

You could just pour the honey over the grated rhizomes into another jar and shake, but I thought the gentle heating helped the infusion.

Add grated rhizomes to the double-boiler with honey and black pepper, gently heat and blend together.

Pour into a clean, sterilised jar and leave to infuse for at least 3 days. Leave for longer for a stronger infusion. I intend to leave the turmeric and ginger in mine and keep refrigerated for a month or so. Honey does naturally preserve. Fermentation will increase shelf-life.

Fermented Turmeric and Ginger Honey

Follow the recipe above but leave some space in the top of the jar which you add the honey and grated rhizomes to. Cover loosely with a lid or muslin cloth secured with band. Allow to ferment at room temperature for 4 weeks.

jar of honey infused with turmeric and ginger — Turmeric and Ginger-Infused Honey

How to use Turmeric and Ginger-Infused Honey

Now you have your lovely Turmeric and Ginger-infused honey, there are endless ways to use it as food and medicine.

Simply take by the spoonful or add to hot water for a virus-busting drink. Add to herbal teas and Dandelion Coffee.

Add to porridge or kefir for a gut-health boosting start to the day.

Use in asian dishes for added flavour and aroma. This a great addition to my winter immune-boosting go-to dish Chicken Noodle Soup or use as a marinade for meat or tofu. Excellent for sauces such as sweet and sour.

Resources

Fresh Turmeric Rhizome

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