Green Olive, Mandarin Cake and Sweet Almond Tea

Why people make this tea

Children who start school quickly discover that the classroom is also a very efficient way to share respiratory viruses. Small children don’t know how to cough phlegm up and out, so when they don’t drink enough water, mucus accumulates in the airways and sets the stage for repeated infections and sensitivity. The challenge for parents is finding something the child will actually drink — most bitter or strongly medicinal teas meet immediate resistance. This simple tea has a mild, slightly sour-sweet flavour that most children accept without complaint. Green olives soothe and clear the throat; dried mandarin cake dissolves phlegm (the white dusting on the outside of a good mandarin cake is the naturally fermented active part — don’t wash it all off); and sweet almonds gently open the airways and moisten the lungs.

Method

1. Wash the green olives and press them flat with the flat of a knife — they do not need to be fully crushed, just loosened so they release their flavour.
2. Rinse the mandarin cake gently (preserve the white coating) and cut into small pieces.
3. Rinse the sweet almonds.
4. Combine all ingredients in a pot with 1.2 L of water.
5. Bring to a boil, then simmer for 30 minutes until reduced to about 600 ml.
6. Serve warm.

Nourilo’s Tips

When choosing a mandarin cake (jie bing), look for one whose white coating is dry, evenly distributed, and does not feel sticky or wet to the touch. Natural fermentation coating will not stick to your fingers; sugar-dusted imitations feel damp and tacky. This tea is gentle enough for daily use during a bout of cough or airway sensitivity. Adults can increase the amounts slightly. If there is no green olive available, three to four dried figs work as a substitute. For infants under 1 year, replace the mandarin cake with one-sixth of a monk fruit (luo han guo).