About a month ago, I asked on Instagram, ‘do you want a fire cider recipe on the blog, a reel, an IGTV, or a post and IG story highlight?’ All of the above, was the answer.

What is fire cider? It’s a wellness tonic. It can support your digestion and immune system. A respected herbalist, Rosemary Gladstar, is credited with creating an actual recipe in the 70s, but this kind of herbal remedy has been around a very long time, as even she notes. She just coined the name and recipe. It has been adapted countless times based on the herbs people have on hand. But, the basics remain the same: onions, garlic, ginger, horseradish and cayenne pepper in apple cider vinegar, finished off with a little raw honey.

Until the last few years, there hasn’t been much on the web about fire cider, but it’s having it’s time currently. Now there is artwork you can buy, recipes galore, beautiful, and I don’t mean that flippantly, simply beautiful food photos of fire cider. And honestly, my ego kept telling me, make it pretty Anne. Make your fire cider picture the envy of Instagram. Alas. No time for that and it really doesn’t matter, in the end product.

It can be pretty when you first put the ingredients in, if you carefully chop and layer but after the first few days, it’ll start to look less like an Instagram photo and more like some weird pickle leftovers without the cucumbers.

I’ve had the ingredients, sitting on my countertop to make all the media above, for 3-4 weeks. What was I waiting for? I hadn’t dug up a root of horseradish yet, and I forgot to pick up organic jalapenos at farmer’s market!

So, here is my busy woman’s guide to making fire cider, because truly, you can start it with the ingredients you do already have, if you are just missing a couple, and leave room for those additions.

I am preparing for company, so the official looking recipe might be next week, all lovely and formatted for you.

But, if you don’t mind jotting it down on the back of an envelope and making room on the fridge to post it with a magnet, this should work for you.

By the way, I don’t really measure, but I gave you an idea of the quantity I put in. This isn’t a wedding cake.

In a clean quart jar, I add:
1 white onion, roughly chopped
10-12 cloves fresh garlic, smashed and roughly chopped
big piece of ginger, peeled and chopped or grated (about 1/2 cup is good)
1/2 cup fresh horseradish root, cleaned and chopped or grated
2-3 organic jalapeno peppers, chopped
1 organic lemon, washed and sliced. Smash it as you add it to jar
1-2 little hot peppers or 1/4 tsp cayenne powder (not habanero)
1 T. turmeric powder or 2 T. fresh turmeric, peeled and chopped or grated
{The last ingredient goes in after you have let this sit for 4-6 weeks and strained the solids out. Honey to taste.}

To be honest, I only put a little honey in mine. It sounds really nasty, I know, but honestly, it tastes kind of like a spicy pickle juice.

This should fill your quart jar about 3/4 full. Pour organic raw apple cider vinegar, with the mother, into the jar, covering your other ingredients.

Now, if you are a busy person and really want to get this started, but are missing some of the ingredients, start with what you have, leaving space in the jar for the rest.

In my 2 quart jar today, I threw in a small piece of ginger and turmeric that were leftover from making fermented turmeric bug, 2 white onions, an entire head of garlic (cloves separated, peeled, chopped,) and 2 little dried hot peppers from last year’s garden. Then, I poured raw apple cider vinegar over it to cover. I will add the jalapenos, horseradish, and more ginger and turmeric when I get it, and fill the jar to the top, leaving 1” headspace to allow for jostling the ingredients, with more raw apple cider vinegar.

Tips:
1. Use a good sealing plastic lid or a canning lid with parchment or waxed paper between the vinegar and the lid and the contents. You will be agitating the jar every so often, keeping it in a dark corner of your kitchen or a cupboard until it’s time to strain it, about 6 weeks.
2. You give the jar a jostle every day or so, to make sure the vinegar covers all the ingredients, regularly. This is 100% apple cider vinegar, so I’ve never had an issue with spoilage.

Get started today. I take a sip of strained fire cider anytime I feel like I’m more susceptible to getting sick, or if I feel a little off. And cold and flu season is coming, when we get outside less and breathe recycled air more. I like to make enough to last me many months, but you can start small and half the ingredients into a pint jar.

Disclaimer…this is not a cure. Make sure you see your doctor or nurse practitioner if you feel the need.

Anne Dovel
Prairiewomanarts