Fresh Dendrobium Orchid and American Ginseng Tea (Xian Shi Hu Hua Qi Shen Cha)

Why people make this tea

Dendrobium (shi hu) is one of the nine “immortal herbs” listed in a Tang dynasty Taoist text — a list that also includes ginseng, reishi, and caterpillar fungus. This gives you a sense of how highly it has been regarded in Chinese herbal tradition. Its reputation rests primarily on its ability to nourish yin: to replenish the body’s fluids when dryness, heat, or prolonged illness has depleted them.

Fresh dendrobium is available at Chinese herb shops and Asian grocers, or online. It looks like a small succulent plant or a cluster of smooth green-grey stems. The best quality has purple or iron-green colouring; yellowish-green stems are of lower quality but still useful. Combined with American ginseng (which cools and generates fluids without overheating the system the way Asian red ginseng might), this tea is gentle, refreshing, and particularly suited to anyone whose throat, voice, or overall yin has been taxed.