Malt, Licorice & Tangerine Peel Tea

Why people make this tea

During Chinese New Year, even the most careful eaters find themselves reaching for one more piece of roast pork or braised pig’s trotter. The result is a familiar heaviness — bloated, sluggish, not hungry but not comfortable either. This is what Chinese food therapy calls “ji zhi” (积滞, accumulated food stagnation). Nourilo’s remedy is beautifully simple: three common ingredients, pre-cut and packed into a reusable tea bag, ready to steep whenever the stomach protests.

Toasted barley malt has long been used in Chinese herbal medicine to stimulate digestive enzyme activity and relieve food stagnation — particularly after rich, fatty, or floury meals. Dried tangerine peel (chen pi) moves stagnant qi in the digestive system, making it easier for the gut to process and move food along. Licorice root (gan cao) rounds the blend out by tonifying the middle and harmonising the other two herbs. Together, they make a mildly fragrant, pleasant tea that most people find surprisingly easy to drink.