Fire cider is an immune boosting, circulation improving, cold fighting, easy to make tonic. It's a spicy, tasty vinegar infusion packed with warming and wellness supporting ingredients, perfect for the colder months!
Your ingredients for your fire cider may change year after year depending on preference or what you have available around you. Apple cider vinegar, garlic, onion, ginger, horseradish, and hot peppers are the standard base ingredients, but you can add/change/subtract ingredients and herbs to fit your needs. It's a very flexible recipe!
Half-gallon canning jar with a tight fitting lid
Cheesecloth or a fine mesh strainer
½ cup grated fresh horseradish root
½ cup (or more) fresh chopped onions
¼ cup (or more) chopped garlic
¼ cup (or more) grated ginger
Chopped fresh or dried cayenne pepper to taste. Can be whole peppers or powdered. It should be nice and hot, but not so hot you can’t tolerate it. Better to start mild and add more pepper if needed.
About 4 cups raw apple cider vinegar, depending on your jar
About 1/4 cup raw honey, adjust to taste
Ideas of other ingredients to add to your fire cider: thyme, turmeric, echinacea, cinnamon, jalapenos, rose hips, ginseng, lime, grapefruit, astragalus, parsley, burdock, oregano, peppercorns, the list goes on and on! Experiment and find what you like best.
Place herbs in a half-gallon canning jar and cover with enough raw unpasteurized apple cider vinegar to cover the herbs by at least three to four inches. Cover tightly with a tight fitting lid.
Place jar in a warm place and let for three to four weeks. Best to shake every day to help in the maceration process.
After three to four weeks, strain out the herbs and reserve the liquid.
Add honey to taste. Warm the honey first so it mixes in well. Your Fire Cider should taste hot, spicy, and sweet.
Rebottle and enjoy! Fire Cider will keep for several months unrefrigerated if stored in a cool pantry. But it’s better to store in the refrigerator.
Drink a tablespoon of fire cider (or more!) each day. Up the dose to 3 tablespoons a day as soon as you feel a cold coming on. You can take it straight or add it to recipes like fried rice, drizzled on a salad, or added to veggies or veggie juices.
Source: Gladstar, Mary. Fire Cider! 101 Zesty Recipes for Health-Boosting Remedies Made with Apple Cider Vinegar. 2019.
