Prepared Mulberry Mistletoe, Black Soybean and Nan Zao Sweet Tea

Why people make this sweet tea

Steam-prepared mulberry mistletoe — available at Chinese herb shops and Asian grocers — costs a touch more than the raw kind, but it cooks up with far less bitter astringency. Mulberry mistletoe is a wonderfully versatile, hardy and inexpensive tonic: traditionally it nourishes the liver and kidney, strengthens the sinews and bones, dispels wind-damp, and supports the blood. Simmered with green-kernel black soybeans and nan zao into a sweet tea, it is a gentle everyday comfort.

Method

1. Separately soak and wash the mulberry mistletoe and the black soybeans; rinse the nan zao.
2. Simmer everything in 2.4 L of water for 1 hour.
3. Add rock sugar, stir until dissolved, and serve.

Nourilo’s Tips

This is a fragrant, tasty sweet tea fine for men, women, young and old to drink regularly. The bright-skinned green-kernel black soybeans carry more vitamins and trace elements than ordinary black soybeans — but anyone with high uric acid should swap the soybeans for lotus seeds. Drink it at around room temperature rather than ice-cold, which is kinder to the stomach.