SURYA AGNI TEA
When I’m feeling a bit lethargic or having trouble digesting my food, Surya Agni tea is my go-to remedy to help ignite my Agni, or digestive fire. Surya Agni means sun-fire in Sanskrit, and this is definitely the colour of the sun!
When your Agni is in balance, you experience good digestion and your body is able to break down everything you put into it, while also assimilating all the nutrients. But when Agni is out of whack, it can lead to all sorts of digestive problems, and in turn cause illness. If your Agni is slow-burning (Kapha Agni), a meal can leave you sluggish and bloated. To combat this, whip up this tea to sip slowly up to 15 minutes before you eat to wake up your digestion, or during your meal to help it go down better.
I’ve been drinking a variation of this hot ginger and turmeric bitter digestive combination for years to warm up my Agni. As I’ve further developed my understanding of Ayurveda during this time, I’ve added a pinch of salt and a dash of maple syrup to help get my digestive juices flowing, swapped lemon for the more gentle lime, and added black pepper — always beneficial with turmeric to help absorb the curcumin in the latter, and another "fire starter" in its own right!
Careful, though, if you’re a Pitta type — or experiencing a Pitta imbalance — the heating qualities of this tea, with its pungent spices and sour citrus is not for you. Your Agni should be strong enough already, anyway!
And if you are experiencing any digestive discomfort after a meal, then make up my detox herbal tea to help settle it.
INGREDIENTS
Serves 1
1 tbsp fresh root ginger, finely grated (unpeeled if organic)
1/2 tsp ground turmeric
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
Juice of 1⁄2 lime
Dash of maple syrup (optional)
Pinch of salt (optional)
METHOD
Boil a kettle and put the grated ginger, turmeric and black pepper in a teapot.
Fill with 600 ml of hot water (not boiling), stir and leave to brew for 10 minutes.
Strain and add the lime juice with a dash of maple syrup and a pinch of salt if using.