I’ve always loved that many herbal remedies can be found from items in the pantry. Below is a great article about this very subject! One remedy not touched upon is one of my own personal favorites: Celery Seed! You can read my post on Celery seed here, and read my celery seed monograph here (PDF format).

10 Remedies You Can Find In Your Kitchen

When you begin to explore natural remedies you quickly realize that many herbs and spices that we use in our everyday cooking can also be medicinal. The idea of food as medicine is not a new one.

My pantry is stocked with herbs and spices that I use to enhance flavor in my meals but also to brew medicinal teas, add to oils, and use to make salves. Here are ten remedies you probably already have in your kitchen and may not even know it.   

1. Apple Cider Vinegar

Apple Cider Vinegar is found in most kitchens. It’s commonly used in salad dressings and for other culinary purposes. However, it has many other uses as well.

Use it as a sore throat gargle, as a facial toner to soothe skin irritations, or to wash your hair. It has been shown to help control blood sugar in diabetics and can help reduce your risk of cancer. Always make sure to dilute your apple cider vinegar because it is highly acidic.

ACV Sore Throat Gargle

• Dilute 1 – 2 TBSP of vinegar in an 8-ounce glass of water.
• Take a swig and gargle for 30 seconds. Spit it out. Rinse your mouth.
• Repeat every 2-3 hours.

2. Garlic

Garlic is a staple found in just about every home. The foundation of many flavor combinations garlic has many health benefits. People have been using garlic medicinally since ancient times. It helps boost your immune system and prevent colds, lower cholesterol, and lower blood pressure.

There are many ways to incorporate the healing power of garlic. Try something new, like infusing garlic in honey. The garlic will ferment adding beneficial probiotics to the mixture. It is great for colds and the flu.

Honey Fermented Garlic

• Place garlic in a glass jar and cover it with honey.

Make sure you leave plenty of headspace at the top of the jar to accommodate the additional liquid and bubbles that will be created in the process. This will help prevent explosions of honey in your kitchen.

• You want to flip the jar daily to ensure the garlic stays coated in honey. This will help prevent mold from forming.
• After several days you should see bubbles begin to form. This is a sign fermentation has begun. Burp the jar daily to release the gasses. Over time the activity in the jar will decrease and you can burp less frequently.
• When the bubbling stops the fermentation is complete. This can take several months but the end result is worth it.
• For best results, make sure you use organic garlic and raw honey. You can use the garlic for cooking, add the honey to tea, or simply eat it by the spoonful if you like.

3. Honey

A delicious and natural sweetener, honey has many health benefits. It is high in antioxidants, which can help lower blood pressure and lower cholesterol.

Honey can be used to help heal wounds and burns and is good for sore throats and coughs in children.

For wound or burn care simply apply honey topically. Studies have shown it is an effective antibiotic and provides good results. A teaspoon of honey can help quiet a hacking cough.  

4. Ginger

Ginger is often used in Asian cooking and holiday baking but ginger can do more than spice up your meal. There are many reasons to have more ginger in your life.

Ginger is anti-inflammatory and high in antioxidants. It helps calm nausea, lowers blood sugar and cholesterol, can ease arthritis symptoms, and can help contribute to weight loss.

There are many delicious ways to add this medicinal spice to your daily routine but an easy and delicious way is to make ginger tea.

Ginger Tea

Slice about one thumb’s length of ginger root. Boil water. Add the ginger root to the boiling water and boil for 5-10 minutes to make a decoction.  Strain out the ginger and add honey to taste.

5. Lemon

When life gives you lemons make lemonade. Or make a remedy for sore throats. Lemons have long been used to help with sore scratchy throats caused by colds or the flu.

Mix a teaspoon of lemon juice into warm water and drink it. You can add honey to taste.

6. Chili

Chilis, like cayenne, are used in Mexican and Indian food to turn up the heat but you can use them to make a healing salve for sore muscles.

Cayenne Salve

• Infuse chilis into a carrier oil like sesame or sweet almond oil.
• Place the chilis in a jar and cover with oil.
• Either leave the jar in a sunny window for a month or you can heat the oil slowly by placing it in a pot of water on the stove for several hours.
• Strain the infused oil through a cheesecloth to remove the chilis.
• Store your infused oil in a jar in a cool, dark place.
• To make a salve mix your infused carrier oil with a harder butter, like cacao or shea butter, and beeswax.
• Melt equal parts butter, beeswax, and oil together in a double boiler to combine. 
• Pour the melted mixture into a glass jar and allow it to cool.
• Apply it directly to your aching muscles for immediate relief.

7. Rosemary

Rosemary is a common culinary herb used to flavor potatoes and chicken. Did you know it makes a delicious medicinal tea as well?

It is anti-inflammatory, high in antioxidants, and antimicrobial. Long associated with aiding memory, rosemary also can help reduce anxiety and elevate your mood.

Rosemary Tea

Simply add two teaspoons of rosemary leaves to 8 ounces of hot water. Allow to steep 5 minutes and strain out the leaves. Enjoy.

8. Mint

Mint is my favorite kitchen remedy. I always keep it on hand to brighten up drinks and to freshen my breath. I love having a small plant growing in my kitchen that I can use to pluck a few leaves for tea or to add to lemonade. It makes a great addition to medicinal teas that don’t taste so great.

But mint can stand alone medicinally as well. It is great to relieve upset stomachs, headaches, and to calm anxiety.  It contains menthol, which can help you breathe better when you have a cold and ease muscle pain when applied directly to the skin.

Whether you drink it in tea, or simply breathe in the scented mint can serve as a mood elevator. 

9. Basil

Basil is an herb that is easy to grow and commonly found in most kitchens.

While there are many delicious ways to cook with basil don’t discount the medicinal properties of this herb. Basil is antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antibacterial, and antimicrobial, all of which make basil a good herb to have on hand.

Fresh leaves can be applied to insect bites to help with the sting, and tea is good for an upset stomach or to help calm a cough from a cold.

10. Oregano

Another easy-to-grow culinary staple is oregano. You may be surprised to find all the medicinal uses for this common pizza season. Oregano can calm an upset stomach, relieve a headache, and soothing aching muscles. Just like the other herbs, you can easily use it to brew tea to cure many of your woes. 

While you can use each of the herbs and spices alone as an effective remedy there are many ways to combine them together to make more potent medicines.

Once you open your eyes to using your food as medicine, you will find there are many more herbs and spices in your kitchen that can be used to heal yourself.

BY RACHAEL BLASBALG; The Lost Herbs (www.thelostherbs.com)