Four herbs that started my kitchen apothecary
and a quick start guide to working with herbs in your kitchen
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My foray into herbalism began in my tiny dorm room as a college student. My singular 1 pound bag of raspberry leaf has since grown to a collection of amber glass mason jars in my kitchen that I turn to with my growing knowledge to support me whenever I need the nutrients and many benefits of these herbs.
I believe that now more than ever, good health can be accessible and in the hands of the people. I believe that herbalism is for everyone, which is why I started my Kitchen Herbalism column here on my newsletter: I want to share with all of you my knowledge and what I am continuing to learn so that you can build your own knowledge-base, toolkit, and kitchen apothecary to turn to for nourishment. I seek to be a source of inspiration for you all and I want to empower you to take this knowledge and your health into your own hands.
In this post, I am going to share four of the first herbs I started to use in my own kitchen for personal wellness and some ways that you can use and incorporate them beyond just drinking them as tea! I will also be sharing some general knowledge and quick start tips for working with herbs in your kitchen.
First of all, why loose leaf herbs?
In my first experience brewing loose leaf herbs, I immediately noticed a difference in the taste, quality, and potency of using loose leaf over tea bags. Among the differences and benefits of using loose leaf vs. a bag of tea is that there is no “tea bag” taste. When you purchase loose leaf herbs, you become more familiar with what’s typically finely minced up inside of a tea bag. Not only do you enjoy an herb’s full flavor profile, but you can now identify its color, texture, and smell. You cut the middleman out of your herbal tea experience, and by doing so, you can also ensure its quality and reduce exposure to things like bleach and plastic found in many tea bags.
Buying in bulk is not only economical and helps to get you the most out of your dollar, but you can get really nice quantities for what you end up paying. My herbs are one of my favorite investments. However, if you just want to dip your toe in before diving into a bulk purchase, Frontier Co-Op sells smaller 4 oz bags of each herb listed in this post.
I most often get my herbs from the Frontier Co-Op and Starwest Botanical brands on iHerb. You can use my code KEN8980 for 5% off every order at iHerb.
Four herbs to start your kitchen apothecary
Raspberry Leaf
The leaf of the raspberry plant has been used for centuries in women’s health for supporting a healthy cycle and easing menstrual cramps. In college, I frequently ordered my self-care goods from iHerb, and realized that it was more economic for me to order a 1 lb pound bag of raspberry leaf tea than it was to keep buying the boxes of Yogi tea. So, I ordered myself a bag, and got myself some stainless steel tea strainers from Amazon to make large pitchers of raspberry leaf tea using my electric tea kettle in my dorm room. This was my very first loose leaf herb, and I now strive try to incorporate raspberry leaf into my weekly and monthly herbal infusions to promote reproductive health.
Raspberry leaf is a plant source of vitamins A, C and E, minerals like calcium, potassium, magnesium, phosphorus, and antioxidants like flavonoids and tannins. Its strong nutrient profile makes it a great tea for menstruating and pregnant women. In fact, many women drink raspberry leaf tea in the third trimester to support a healthy and easy birth, with many studies supporting the benefits of raspberry leaf consumption for reproductive health. While it’s great for women’s health, it has no hormonal activity, and can therefore also be enjoyed by the whole family for its other nutritional benefits.
How it tastes: like black tea without the caffeine, mildly sweet, very refreshing
How I use it:
blended with other herbs, like nettle and more, in an herbal infusion
brewed hot with chamomile, ginger, and/or ceylon cinnamon during my bleed
cold brewed by itself for a tasty, hydrating, and nourishing uterine tonic iced tea during hot summer cycles
Nettle
Stinging nettle is sometimes called nature’s multivitamin. It gets its name from the fact that it has many tiny stingers on it that can cause an itchy rash if encountered in the wild without care. Not to fear, however, as processed dried nettle does not come with this precaution for handling it.
Nettle can be foraged in many North American woods, and it is a versatile herb that can be used culinarily like spinach when used fresh, brewed to make herbal teas and infusions, and in haircare to promote hair strength and growth. It’s a strong plant source of vitamins, minerals, and chlorophyll (especially if you can get it fresh, I once bought some from a forager at the Rittenhouse Square Farmers Market here in Philly). Among the many trace minerals present in nettle is silica. Silica is an essential mineral for hair and nails, and it has historically been used to support hair health and growth. It is also an important mineral for collagen production, which provides all-over elasticity and structural support for our bodies.
Get seasonal allergies? Nettle is known to be a natural antihistamine, helping to reduce your body’s histamine and inflammatory response. This makes nettle clutch to have on hand for allergies an illness.
It pairs well with raspberry leaf, and they are often recommended together to replenish nutrients after a woman’s menstruation. It’s a great herb to drink all month long, or daily, for both men and women, boys and girls alike!
How it tastes: honestly? It tastes pretty grassy. It can take some getting used to, but tastes great blended with other herbs or with a bit of lemon juice and honey added to it as a hot tea
How I use it:
in daily and weekly herbal infusions
blended with other culinary herbs like rosemary, oregano, etc. when marinating proteins in the kitchen—these aromatic herbs will cancel out any grassy flavors nettle brings (TIP: add some dried, cut and sifted nettle to an empty spice shaker and keep it with all your other herbs!)
added in with vegetable scraps and other herbs to make my own mineral-rich vegetable stock
infused in apple cider vinegar to make a mineral-spiked vinegar for salad dressing OR as a conditioning and nutritive vinegar rinse for your hair
chopped finely and added to homemade kimchi or sauerkraut
Oatstraw
Oatstraw was the third herb I began to use regularly. Similarly to nettle, it’s high in vitamin and mineral content. Oat is especially rich in B vitamins, which support our nervous system, and silica, which is an essential mineral for nail and hair growth and strength. It is classified as what is called a nervine because of its nervous system-supporting qualities. It can be great to enjoy as an extra strength infusion during times of high stress or when extra nourishment is needed. Consistent consumption of this herb over time can help you to maintain calm and a balanced mood.
Oatstraw is also rich in polysaccharides, making it a hydrating herb that’s great to consume for helping to deliver moisture to your body.
How it tastes: a bit grassy, but not as much as nettle. It’s a lot more mellow, and is great added to any herbal blend where you want the added nutrition without the strong grassy flavor that nettle, for example, would add to the blend.
How I use it:
in herbal infusions and vegetable stocks for general wellness and nervine support
infused with nettle and rosemary in apple cider vinegar to make an invigorating and silica-rich vinegar rinse for hair
brewed hot with antioxidant-rich goji berries or hibiscus for a beauty tea
Hibiscus
Hibiscus quickly became a favorite when I introduced it to my herb collection. I like to call my hibiscus infusions “nature’s Kool-Aid” because of the bright hot pink color it naturally produces once infused. You may be familiar with Jamaican sorrel, which is a beverage popular on the Caribbean island made from hibiscus herb and sweetener (fun fact: because of this, hibiscus herb is called “Jamaica” in Spanish!) While it comes from the same plant, the hibiscus flower that most associate with the tropics is not the same typically used in herbal preparations. The part of the hibiscus plant most commonly used in herbalism is called the calyx, which looks likes a deep red pointed bud that protects the inner flower before it blooms.
It’s a stellar source of plant-based, non-heme iron, and a spectacular source of vitamin C, which can support the absorption of its non-heme iron content. It is cooling and provides great electrolytes for hydration and is thus one of my favorite herbs to infuse during the summer months as an iced tea along with green tea leaves.
You will want to exercise caution if you are on medication to manage diabetes, blood pressure, take diuretics, or have kidney or liver disease.
How it tastes: distinctly deep, yet bright and tart. With a touch of sweetener, it’s truly my favorite herbal “gatorade” or “punch”
How I use it:
cold brewed with green tea and schisandra berries for a hydrating iced tea during the summer months
to add nice flavor and a boost of vitamin C when using a little with other herbs
blended with burdock, rosemary, and nettle to make a hair tea that I use to make masks for my hair
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Working with Herbs in Your Kitchen: A Quick Start Guide
Not sure how to get started with using herbs?
Here are some ways that I infuse or brew my herbs:
A general rule of thumb for serving sizes of herbs in tea is to start with about 1-2 tsps of singular herb per about 8 oz of water. Check packaging, a handbook, or an online resource for suggested servings as they may vary from herb to herb. For a larger pot, quart, or half-gallon-sized mason jar, you may want to increase to 1-4 tablespoons of an individual herb, for example. I generally lean towards making stronger infusions.
If you buy a premade loose leaf herbal blend, you may notice that the packaging suggests a 1 tablespoon serving of herbs per 8 oz serving of tea. This is because since there are more herbs in that blend, you will want to increase the serving amount from just one small teaspoon in order to be able to get more of the benefits from each herb included!
The herbs I shared are generally safe to use for many people, however some, like hibiscus, in large quantities can cause issues for people with diabetes, medicating for blood pressure, taking diuretics, or have existing kidney and liver diseases. It’s always wise to test smaller quantities of any herb before diving in with larger doses. If in doubt, you may also consult with a doctor. However, I will always strongly encourage you to do your own research so that you, too, can become familiar with these herbs, their uses, and any precautions. I share this knowledge so that you may be empowered to grow in this wisdom yourself and not need to rely on others. Many allopathic, Western doctors may not always carry this knowledge themselves or will not share this information willingly.
As you start to use an herb and ensure that you have no negative reactions to it, you can adjust the amount of herb used to your liking or for higher potency. Here, you can start to use your intuition (and common sense!)
Hot Tea / Infusion
You may use a tea strainer or teapot to brew a cup or pot of herbal tea. You can also use a large mason jar, as they are heat safe. Brewing herbs with hot water makes a hot tea that you can enjoy when you need something to warm up your insides. The hot water can quickly extract from the herbs and create a strong infusion in a short amount of time.
Cold Brew Infusion
You can also use room-temperature water to infuse herbs. One benefit of using room temperature water as opposed to hot water is that cooler water can extract many of the benefits from herbs without heat that might kill off some heat-sensitive nutrients like vitamin C. I often make a large half-gallon herbal infusion in the evening. I spoon my herbs directly into my large mason jar, then fill it to the very top with room temperature water from my water filter. Put a lid on the jar, and you can leave it on the counter or store it in the refrigerator until the next morning. You can then strain it into your favorite drinking vessel, such as your water bottle or a quart-sized mason jar so that you may take it with you on the go!
Drinking Herbal Infusions
Find ways that you enjoy drinking your herbs. Adding honey, monk fruit or stevia, lemon juice, or 1-2 tablespoons of apple cider vinegar, are some of my favorite additives for making infusions more palatable. Some herbal teas and infusions taste better warm, while others can be enjoyed cold or at room temperature. You can even use herbal infusions to make other beverages. For example, you may make a ginger and chamomile infusion that you can use instead of plain water to make a matcha or golden milk latte with. You can add unsweetened nettle and oatstraw infusions to soups to up the mineral content. Play around to see what works for you!
It’s also important to note that herbal infusions will keep for up to 3 days. Store leftovers in the refrigerator.
Infusing Your Foods
You can use a large, fine tea strainer to add herbs to vegetable stocks and more. Many herbs go great with savory meals, giving them a nutritional and beneficial boost. Nettle and oatstraw are two herbs that I like to add to my vegetable stock, and I sometimes add a tablespoon of cut and sifted nettle leaf to chicken or a meat rub. One of my friends added a tablespoon or so of dried nettle to a soup that she made when I was over to hang out one evening, and it came out delicious!
You can get creative and try adding cut and sifted herbs to your own seasoning blends or make your own herbal salt. A coffee grinder can help to blitz herbs into tinier pieces or powder.
Herbal vinegars are another way that I like to incorporate herbs into my diet. Make your own vinegar for salad dressing by infusing apple cider vinegar with a combination of medicinal and culinary herbs! Let me know if you want my recipe for Fire Cider. You can find my recipe for an elderberry oxymel (vinegar and honey extraction) here:
Some Helpful Tools
Any stainless steel tea strainer will help you to make infusing herbs easy-peasy. There are a variety of styles out there: strainers made to fit inside of your favorite mug or teacup, some that can fit into large mason jars for brewing like these cold brew strainers, and even straws that strain herbs while you are drinking. Stainless steel sieves can be used to strain larger herbal infusions into one vessel from another, and you can use a French press to infuse and pour herbal infusions from as well! In college, I had a glass tea-straining water bottle that I used to bring my tea with me on the go, and tea bottles are a great gift idea, too. I urge you to do your research to find some tools that work for you. I personally have collected and keep a few different kinds of tools on hand for various uses.
Lately, I really like these Steepware straining spouts that I can use with my quart- and half-gallon-sized wide mouth mason jars. These make it super easy to make a large quantity of herbal tea that strains while I’m pouring it into a glass. They save me a lot of time and mess!
Let me know what other kinds of content or recipes you’d like to see from me on working with herbs and building an herbal apothecary.
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Yours in nourishment,
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love this post!! also a huge fan of herbs and teas. 🌿 nettle leaf tea for seasonal allergies is the absolute best for me. i used to hate the taste but now it’s like drinking water, haha. i’ve been drinking it for this purpose for years. i’m so happy you shared that - not a lot of people knows about it. :) great post and a lot of it i drink, too!
- h