Surely our readers have heard of the decoction. There are many ways to prepare our plant extracts to apply them in the garden and help us fight pests, fight fungi or strengthen plants and improve their development and growth. But today we are going to focus on the decoction and how to prepare it correctly to extract all the elements of the plant that we need for our preparations. In addition to this, there are other options that are also very interesting, such as the fermented or boiled, the infusionsthe macerations and the essential oils.
WHAT IS A DECOCTION
The decoction is the result of boiling our cut plants (not necessarily very fine) and having previously soaked for 24 hours in water at room temperature. It is the meaning and definition that differentiates decoction from other ways of preparing herbal preparations. In this way we get all the properties of the plants in an efficient way.
Decoctions are only able to extract certain active components from plants if the plants are very tender. In these cases, it is better to make an infusion than a decoction. The woody parts of plants are made up of cells whose walls are stronger and require more heat to break down and release their components into the water. This is why the preparation of a decoction ensures the extraction of all the soluble active principles contained in the plant.
HOW TO PROPERLY PREPARE A DECOCTION OF PLANTS
To properly prepare a decoction of plants or herbs, attention should be paid to the stove that we use It must be stainless steel with enough volume to be able to house our plants and the water that we are going to put, according to the recipe of each preparation.
Kopf 122463 Pot Gigant Large Capacity, Ø 28 cm, Height…
- Type: Large Capacity Stock Pot (Induction Ready) with Glass Lid – Cooking for the Whole Family; measurements: diameter 28 cm, height 21 cm, capacity 12.5 liters
- Material: high quality 18/10 polished stainless steel – compatible with all burners incl. induction; dishwasher safe, resistant, does not alter the taste of food, easy to clean
- Properties: pot with wide rim for easy emptying, encapsulated sandwich-type bottom, thickness of the entire bottom 3.1 mm, wall thickness 0.6 mm, oven-safe up to 240°C, glass lid with hole . ..
- Suitability: Particularly suitable for cooking large quantities, such as stews, soups, stews, etc.
- Scope of delivery: Kopf Gigant large pot (incl. glass lid), instructions
The first thing we will do, as mentioned above, is to soak the dried or freshly chopped plants in water for 24 hours. We have already spoken of the fundamental character of water in these and other preparations, and the ideal is a rainwater between 15º and 25º.
In winter, if we are going to use rainwater, we will let it cool down a bit before using it. Above 25º degradation occurs in our preparation, so if we are going to prepare it in summer, the ideal is to find a place in the shade.
water pH
The ideal pH of water is 5 (you can use strips to measure the pH) if it is below you must use wood ash to correct it.
Once the 24 hours have passed, we will place our preparation on the fire, low heat, and we will leave it for the necessary time depending on the preparation, but it varies between 30 and 60 minutes.
Important
It is interesting and advisable to leave the lid closed so that the most volatile essences of the plants do not escape or evaporate. Once the time is up, we have to leave our decoction without lifting the lid and it is only once cooled that we will filter it to use it.
Decoction of plants: fresh plant or dried plant?
It doesn’t matter whether we use it fresh or dried for herbal decoction. They will serve the same, just change the proportion. In decoction of dried herbs, 10% of the amount needed in the fresh plant is normally used, and the main difference is that some plants cannot be harvested at all times of the year, so learn to dry and keep our plants dry This will help us to always have them available to make purines. The advantage for those who cannot find any or go looking for them is that some are sold already dried in herbal shops.
THE KEYS TO SUCCESS OF A HERBAL DECOCTION
- The quality of the water we use.
- Respect the boiling times according to the preparation.
- Put a lid on to prevent the gasoline from evaporating.
HOW TO STORE
Decoctions have the advantage over porridges or fermented foods that they take much less time to prepare. In the event of an incident in the garden, one can always act more quickly by preparing a decoction than a slurry, however the decoctions have the disadvantage of keeping less well, since they immediately lose their properties or begin to ferment.
the ideal is use them the same day and do not store them more than 15 days. If we are going to store our decoction of plants and herbs, we will do so in plastic bottles, in shady and cool areas of our orchard or garden.
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