Golden Turmeric Milk

​This vegan turmeric milk is delicious. If you are a fan of chai tea lattes this would be right up your alley. Almond and coconut milks are infused with fresh turmeric and ginger, cinnamon sticks, star anise and black peppercorns. A touch of maple syrup is added at the end to help balance heavy spice. Served hot it is a wonderful anytime treat. I like it in the afternoon with something sweet along side or as a calming drink before bed. Drink it hot in the cooler months or chilled over ice on a hot summer day. Why not add a shot of amber rum anytime?

Holy health claims.

Now when reading up on the benefits of turmeric there are a lot of big claims. I read about it being possibly beneficial for arthritis, depression, aging, cancer, heart disease. But I didn't really see any scientific studies linked beside these articles. Maybe it is a lot of hype without enough evidence to back it up. I'm just a chef. I don't know a damn thing about medicine and science. I did learn that the studies done on turmeric involved extracts, where the levels of curcumin would be a lot higher than what you would be able to consume through cooking with turmeric. So this is where turmeric supplements come in.
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​It is note worthy that if curcumin is beneficial to ones overall health, it isn't easily absorbed into the blood stream. A couple of things help absorption. One is black peppercorns. They contain a substance called piperine that aids absorption. The other point is that curcumin is fat soluble. One article suggested consuming turmeric with a fatty meal. I also have seen other turmeric milk recipes that add coconut oil to the milk. I choose not to do that because I don't really feel like drinking oil.

Regardless of what the deal is with turmeric and it's health benefits I can tell you that you should make this beverage because it's tasty AF. Curl up with a blanket and a book and a cup of this delicious golden aromatic beverage and let the day wile away.

What the heck is Turmeric?

Turmeric is a flowering plant from the ginger family. It has been used medicinally for thousands of years in India and China. It was even used in religious ceremony, it's bright yellow colour symbolizing the sun.

The claims surrounding the use of turmeric for medicinal purposes continue today. This is because of a compound found in turmeric called curcumin. It contains antioxidants and is shown to have anti-inflammatory effects.

Recipe:

Method:

Just put everything into a pot except the maple syrup. Bring to a boil, turn the heat to low. I think I let mine infuse for about an hour. I just started doing laundry and cleaning and I tasted it periodically. Once it tasted SPICY I strained the milk and added the maple. You could add more if you like it sweeter. It reduced down to 1 L of milk when finished. For a little extra decadence, try subbing some of the almond milk for more coconut milk. Oh yeah, I used my bodum to froth the milk for the picture because I was feeling fancy. Just pour the hot milk into a bodum and pump the lever up and down quickly and instant froth. No special gadgets necessary.

Ingredients:

1 L Nut milk (I used unsweetened almond milk)
1 can full fat or lite coconut milk
50 g (big thumb size) of fresh ginger, thinly sliced (I don't even peel my ginger guys..like ever)
75 g fresh turmeric, thinly sliced
4 x Cinnamon Stick
6ish x Star Anise  (mine were all broken in the bag, how am I supposed to count accurately)
a sprinkle of Black Peppercorns
1 x Tbsp Maple Syrup (or more to taste)