How to Make a concentrated herbal extract for Essiac Tea at Home

While you can certainly use the traditional herbs used in Essiac Tea just like a loose-leaf herbal tea, the best way to do it is using a decoction method to draw the maximum content from your herbs to create a liquid extract. It takes a bit of time, but it is not overly difficult to do.

For a small batch:

2 Tablespoons (10-15g) herb
5 cups of distilled water

For a large batch:

50-60g of herb
5L of distilled water

Method

Add your water and herbs to a large saucepan and pop onto heat. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat until it is simmering. Reduce the liquid by 1/5^th (allow liquid to evaporate by 1 cup for a small batch, and 1L for a large batch).

Remove the saucepan from the heat, cover, and allow to stand at room temperature for around 10 hours (but not more than 18 hours).

Return the saucepan to the heat and bring to a simmer but not a boil.

Remove from heat and carefully strain your liquid, using a funnel and a sieve, into sterilised bottles or jars.

Seal and store in the fridge.

How to use the extract for tea

Add 2 to 4 Tablespoons of your liquid herbal extract to 1 cup of hot water to consume.

Usually, it is recommended to have a maximum of 4 Tablespoons of extract per day, and to take periodic breaks from consuming it as well. For example, take 1 day off a week, or one week off every three months.

Note: It is important to remember the extract is made using water, so if the taste changes and becomes sour, or growth begins to form on the liquid, discard the liquid and do not consume.