Dried Mulberry and Longan Flesh Tea

Why people make this tea

Mulberry — that slightly translucent, deep-red fruit that appears briefly in early summer — is a humble-looking thing that belies its reputation as one of the finest blood-nourishing foods in Chinese medicine. The dried version is even more concentrated in beneficial compounds. When mulberry is paired with longan flesh (the dried, honey-brown flesh of the longan fruit), you get a combination that is warm, sweet, and deeply sustaining for a nervous system that has been run into the ground. Nourilo introduced this recipe during a period when many people were dealing with job uncertainty and the emotional fallout of a prolonged pandemic — a time when insomnia, anxiety, and a general feeling of being depleted were all too common. The tea does not knock you out; rather, it gently supports the liver and kidneys, nourishes the blood, and over time helps the mind settle. Drink it at midday and again a couple of hours before bed.