(creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0)], via Wikimedia Source: By Excribo Source: By Excribo Source: By Excribo Source: By Excribo Source: By Excribo Making Malunggay Tea - Step by Step Process Step 1: Harvesting of Leaves Collection and harvesting of fresh leaves of the Malunggay tree is easy. Just pick the compound leaves from the tree branch. The leaves come off from the branches quite easily. Special tools are not needed to do this step. You have to pick the greenest mature leaves and make sure to remove those that have signs of yellowing. It is up to you to harvest as much or as little as you want. Step 2: Sorting Place the harvested leaves in a clean dry pan. Shake the leaves to remove dust or cobwebs. Then carefully pick and remove impurities such as dirt, twigs, and small insects like ants. Step 3: Air-drying After sorting and cleaning your harvest, transfer the leaves into a larger flat container for air-drying. Place the container in a shaded and cool area. Do not sun-dry the leaves. This is important because sun-drying can diminish the nutritional content of the leaves. Air-drying takes about three days. After the third day, the leaves will become wilted and they’re ready for crushing. Step 4: Crushing Get a fine wire mesh and place the wilted Malunggay leaves on top of it. Start the crushing process by vigorously shaking the leaves on the wire mesh. This will remove more impurities from the leaves and will eliminate leaf petioles that were shed during the drying process. Step 5: Pan-drying Pan-drying removes moisture to make the leaves brittle. The process deactivates oxidative enzymes and prevents the leaves from rotting. The application of heat also stops the growth of molds. This is a delicate step and proper care must be followed to ensure that the leaves will retain their flavor and nutritional value. Place the pan over low fire and allow it to get warm for about one to two minutes. Pour the dried leaves into the pan and continuously turn them over for about three minutes. Quickly remove the completely dried leaves from the pan and place them in a clean open container to cool. Note: You have the option to further crush the dried leaves to make them more powdery. If you don’t want a powdery consistency, just allow the leaves to cool so you can prepare them for packaging and storage. Step 6: Packaging and Storage Moringa tea is best stored in an air-tight colored glass container. This is done to minimize oxidation, increase shelf-life, and to retain the full flavor of the brew. You can buy small tea bags and pack each bag with two teaspoonfuls of the dried leaves. If you do not have tea bags or you don’t want to use one, storing the tea in a glass container will do. Just make sure to use a thoroughly dry teaspoon for scooping the tea leaves. Step 7: Brewing When brewing, it is best not to boil the leaves so that you can get the full nutritional benefits of Malunggay tea. What you need to do is to steep two teaspoonful of Malunggay tea in boiling water. Allow the leaves to settle at the bottom of the cup before drinking the brew. You can add honey or sugar to the brew if you want a sweet-tasting tea.
Posted on: Wed, 28 Aug 2013 13:15:12 +0000