Boldo Tea with Ginger and Lemon: the Warm Recipe

Boldo is what comes out of the cupboard in Chilean and Argentine homes once the table is cleared, and this version keeps that after-meal custom with two additions: fresh ginger and a squeeze of lemon. The leaf brings camphor and eucalyptus, the ginger brings heat, the lemon brings brightness, and the honey rounds off the bitterness.

The ginger amplifies boldo's warming, slightly camphor-like quality without making the drink harsh. Together they give the cup a gentle, spicy warmth that carries all the way through the finish.

Brew the boldo on the lighter side for this drink—3 minutes maximum. Over-steeping brings out too much bitterness, and you want the herbal earthiness to play nicely with the ginger and honey.

Serve it warm, twenty minutes after a heavy meal or first thing in the morning: the two moments the Southern Cone reserves for boldo. The European Medicines Agency's committee on herbal medicinal products concluded, on the basis of long-standing traditional use rather than clinical trials, that boldo leaf preparations — herbal teas among them — can be used for the relief of symptoms of dyspepsia and mild spasms of the gut, and is explicit that the conclusion rests on traditional use rather than on clinical trials. The same registration is for adults only, and rules boldo leaf out for anyone with liver disease, gallstones, obstruction of the bile duct or other bile duct disorders.