HORCHATA - a traditional drink from the Andes mountains in Ecuador, usually containing over 20+ plant medicines!
I went for a lovely walk mountain hike yesterday, and a local friend pointed to a tree growing, and said its used in Horchata, I was curious about this Horchata and did some more research, and was amazed to find out it is a tea that usually contains over 20 herbs, some of the plants used are only found in this area, apparently it has many uses and I found this article on it,
"This is an incredible drink that is original and can only be found in a little place called Loja, which is located in the south of the Andean region of Ecuador. It must not be confused with Mexican white horchata, this is a vivid-red natural infusion, Horchata is the infusion product of more than twenty different types of fresh-cut herbs and flowers that are grown by farmers in this region. Can you imagine more than twenty plants in the same drink? Some of the ingredients of
Horchata are well-known herbs and flowers with which you are likely familiar, such as mint, chamomile, lemon verbena, lemon grass, basil, roses, violets, and carnations. Horchata is an ancient herbal infusion; its recipe has been passed down through generations to the present. This is the most popular and traditional beverage in southern Ecuador. We are not lying when we say that you can find it in every corner of the city and that everybody in Loja loves it! What makes this beverage special and representative of Ecuador is that some of the ingredients cannot be found in any other places in the entire world as they exist only in the Andean region of Ecuador. They are so rare and unique that there is not even a specific name for them in English. Every morning, Andean farmers pick up fresh herbs and flowers to make this amazing infusion. The infusion acquires all the beneficial properties from the wide variety of ingredients, some of which have calming effects while others relieve insomnia or stomach pain. All of them have an amazing effect on the body. This is why people drink Horchata at breakfast, lunch, or dinner. An interesting fact about Horchata is that can be consumed warm, which is perfect for cold weather, or very chilled, as a refreshing beverage for hotter days.For centuries, the popularity of this beverage in Ecuadorian culture lies in its medicinal, diuretic and digestive properties that help every person who drinks it. A lot of people say that Horchata is able to cure any type of disease if you drink it very frequently. People even say that Horchata gives you eternal youth—or at least many more years of life." -https://www.culturetrav.co/2017/04/19/traditional-healthy-drink-andes-ecuador/
Horchata are well-known herbs and flowers with which you are likely familiar, such as mint, chamomile, lemon verbena, lemon grass, basil, roses, violets, and carnations. Horchata is an ancient herbal infusion; its recipe has been passed down through generations to the present. This is the most popular and traditional beverage in southern Ecuador. We are not lying when we say that you can find it in every corner of the city and that everybody in Loja loves it! What makes this beverage special and representative of Ecuador is that some of the ingredients cannot be found in any other places in the entire world as they exist only in the Andean region of Ecuador. They are so rare and unique that there is not even a specific name for them in English. Every morning, Andean farmers pick up fresh herbs and flowers to make this amazing infusion. The infusion acquires all the beneficial properties from the wide variety of ingredients, some of which have calming effects while others relieve insomnia or stomach pain. All of them have an amazing effect on the body. This is why people drink Horchata at breakfast, lunch, or dinner. An interesting fact about Horchata is that can be consumed warm, which is perfect for cold weather, or very chilled, as a refreshing beverage for hotter days.For centuries, the popularity of this beverage in Ecuadorian culture lies in its medicinal, diuretic and digestive properties that help every person who drinks it. A lot of people say that Horchata is able to cure any type of disease if you drink it very frequently. People even say that Horchata gives you eternal youth—or at least many more years of life." -https://www.culturetrav.co/2017/04/19/traditional-healthy-drink-andes-ecuador/
Overall a very interesting native tea and I look forward to learning more about it and the plants involved, as truly a lot of the plant medicines used here have hardly been studied beyond its traditional use! I also found a more scientific article on this tea if anyone would like to do some more research: https://ethnobiomed.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s13002-017-0145-z
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