"Menjurje"

... around this time last year i began to feel sick. I felt the usual symptoms beginning with an irritated throat and a stuffy nose, alerting me that allergy season was in full effect. I developed a cold and along with the store brand over-the-counter "medicine", I loaded up on chicken soup, teas, and vitamin-C. A week went by and when i wasn't any better, moms called upon a good friend of the family. Together, like mad, chatty scientists in a telenovela lab, they whipped up a concoction that set me on the path to well-being. This concoction didn't have a name. Family friend, Edith, recalled how the recipe to this natural tonic was handed down to her by my grandmother, mi abulla. My moms called it "menjurje". 

A mixture of ingredients that results in something with a strange odor, taste, and/or appearance is what my moms referred to as menjurje (men-hoor-heh) [pictured on the right]. I remember asking her what menjurje meant and after trying to explain she just laughed and said, "Menjurje is ... menjurje!" Whatever it was, i drank a shot of it everyday. 

Last week, Edith and my mom were in the kitchen making a large pot of menjurje and filled up several glass jars with it to store away, preparing for the season. On schedule, a couple of nights ago i began to feel those usual symptoms (and the reason why i missed posting yesterday), i immediately reached for the menjurje. I like menjurje warm and sip the shot glass amount like tea first thing in the morning. 

Yesterday my brother and his wife dropped by and brought me some "Cyclone Cider" [pictured on the left], which he swears by and picked up at Whole Foods. Nasty tasting and smelling stuff (probably because it contains vinegar and horseradish root and why you only take a dropper sized amount!), but i thought it was interesting that this herbal tonic contains some of the same ingredients as ... menjurje!


Menjurje ingredients include (but not limited to, as i'm sure there are many variations):

• water 
• garlic
• ginger root
• lemons
• cinnamon
• honey

>> Amounts vary: In a large pot add at least one whole garlic, ginger root, the peeled lemon skins, and cinnamon sticks, to the water and--in low heat--bring to a boil. Strain into another pot, adding honey and squeezing the lemon juice to your liking.

Salud!