Rain Water · Tea break · Qi Stagnation
Kumquat, rose bud & tangerine peel tea
Tangy kumquats, fragrant rose buds and mellow aged tangerine peel — a bright, uplifting afternoon cup.
- 13 min
- Serves 2
- Steep
- Easy
WarmingSoothes liver, lifts moodMoves qi, wakes digestion
Why it suits you: Qi Stagnation brings low mood and a tight chest, and grey, muggy Rain Water days make it worse. Kumquat, rose and tangerine peel soothe the liver and move qi, and their fragrance also wakes a damp-burdened spleen — a lift for the afternoon.
Method
Prep 5 min · Cook 8 min- 1Rub the kumquats with a little salt, rinse, halve and remove the seeds. Soak the tangerine peel until soft, scrape off the pith and slice thinly.
- 2Put the kumquats and peel in a teapot, pour in 500 ml boiling water, cover and steep for 5 minutes.
- 3Add the rose buds and steep for 3 more minutes — don't boil roses or the fragrance is lost.
- 4Once it is cool enough to sip, stir in the honey, or pour into a flask for the office.
Cautions
- Avoid rose bud tea during pregnancy.
- Don't use kumquats from New Year pot plants — they may have been sprayed; buy edible kumquats from a fruit stall.
Chef's tips
- Xinhui peel aged five years or more is mellower; top up the pot with boiling water for a second round.
The TCM view
Rose buds are sweet, slightly bitter and warm, soothe the liver and harmonise blood; kumquats are pungent, sweet and warm, move qi and clear phlegm; aged tangerine peel is pungent, bitter and warm, moves qi and dries dampness. All three are aromatic, so they ease stagnation and also transform dampness — right for stagnation plus Rain Water damp.
