How to Make Easy Elderberry Tincture at Home!
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- čas přidán 5. 09. 2024
- #elderberry #herbalism #homesteading
Tinctures made from black elderberries (Sambucus Nigra) can be a great addition to one's herbal home remedy cabinet! These tart berries have long been used in folk medicine for their immune boosting and anti-viral properties. Unlike many types of berries, elderberries shouldn't be eaten in raw form as most have toxic qualities, especially in the seed, but the fully ripe berry of the black elderberry tree can be used to makes syrups and tinctures without having to worry about toxicity, likely because the seed and berry is strained out of the final product. Not unlike modern medicine, many herbal remedies have some level of toxicity at high levels, but are quite safe in lower quantities.
I believe that elderberries have great medicinal qualities and I am totally comfortable using them when needed. Please consult with your medical practitioner or a clinical herbalist prior to taking any herbal remedy to ensure its safety, especially if you have medical issues, are taking medications, are pregnant or nursing.
Here are the dosages of elderberry tincture that I would take:
When I'm not sick, but others in my home are sick or I've been exposed to people with a cold or flu virus, I would take 2 dropperfuls (2 mls) once daily, as a preventative aid.
When I feel a cold or flu coming on myself, I would start taking 2 dropperfuls (2 mls) 3 times per day.
These doses are for adults. There are many recommendations for dosing online which includes dosing for children. You can take a tincture in full strength by dropping it right into your mouth, or you can mix it with a little water, tea, or honey and take that way.
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Disclaimer: All content shared on our CZcams channel @savoryandsage and all other social media accounts are for informational and fun purposes only and are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease or ailment. We are not medical professionals or clinical herbalists, but rather am sharing information for entertainment purposes only. Please use herbal recipes with caution and consider your own health status prior to proceeding. Please consult your health care provider prior to using any remedy or recipe that we share on our channel or social media accounts. We will not be held responsible for any adverse effects that may arise from using any recipe or method that we have shared.
Good simple video on elderberry tincture. Thanks
You're very welcome!! This was my very first video lol so glad you liked it!
Love that you don't drag everything out like others do.
Thanks! I am kind of a long winded person lol but try not to be too dragged out!! This one was my very first video ever so I know the quality isn't great! I'm working on a general tincture video to put out soon😀
@@savoryandsage Well I enjoyed your video and to the point education. Usually I have to fast forward videos, because I don't want to fall asleep waiting for the rest of the information. And you delivered it perfectly. Thank again.
Thanks for sharing this video, I am just now getting interested in making my own tinctures. Planning my herb garden with several medicinal herbs. I will be ordering some elder berries to make this ❤
Love it❤ straight to the point
Thank you
Hey…I just found your channel today. This is great, I just planted two elderberry plants last year. I hope they are alive buried way under our snow. Thank you,..❄️🇨🇦❄️
Glad you enjoyed it! My newly planted elderberry and well covered in snow now too lol! Fingers crossed they come back!
@@savoryandsage we have lots of the native elderberries growing wild here…but the red ones. And they are so hardy. So with a bit,of,luck, ours will survive
You’re fantastic! That was great. Now just keep cranking them out.
Haha thanks!! And that's the plan!
So glad to have found you! You popped up in "new to you" tonight! Went to you channel and was super happy to see you're putting out content! Subscribed!!!
Thank you for this video !! I'm learning how to make tinctures , and elderberry is one of my favorite things!!
Glad you liked it! I'm getting ready to make my third batch of elderberry syrup for the year so may throw that on video as well! Elderberry is one of my faves as well!
@@savoryandsage I just made a batch myself 2 days ago!!
@@tracysimon7972 awesome!! I've been taking it pretty much daily as a preventative.
Great video Jen. That was quite interesting, thanks for sharing.
Thanks Juanita!
Enjoyed your video
Thank you!
Here in CANADA we also have Blue Elderberry. I foraged the blue ones. Planted new black ones. Got a few clusters . Ranch did well where I live in zone 5b. I was taught to out a piece of parchment paper under lid while making tinctures. Saves the kid from any type of erosion. I have made several batches of syrups and fermented some in honey.Thanks for the video.
Hey Jennifer! Thanks for the info! I'm in Canada as well actually, zone 5a in Newfoundland😀 yeah that is definitely a good idea re the parchment paper! I do that regularly when I make pickled goods with vinegar but not as regularly with things like tinctures though maybe I should! We don't have blue elderberries here in NL...not locally to me anyhow but I must check that to confirm.
Welcome to CZcams!! I have been very interested in elderberry products and looking forward to trying this out ❤️
Thanks! I'll probably do a video on the syrup as well! Just subscribed to your channel....looking forward to following your journey!
Hey Jen… so glad I found your Channel 🤗 Congrats btw.. I subscribed and look forward to learning from you!!!! ✨
I don’t have a dehydrator and would like to use them fresh. How full do we make the jar with fresh elderberries?
Awesome video
Thanks!
I’m new at this.. thank you for your video.
Glad you liked it! And this stuff is addictive once you start lol!
Awesome content!
🥰
It’s such an interesting subject
Awesome video! :)
Thanks!
I picked fresh but i have a dehydrator. Would you suggest drying them first?
I prefer to use dried elderberries personally but there are many that will tincture using fresh berries. It's really a personal preference.
Thank you for this video. I just subscribed to your channel. :)
Thanks! I am getting back to the videos real soon! Been up to our eyeballs here with kitchen renos, etc! But we are finally settling again so I'm much looking forward to working on some new videos!
Couldn't hear very well.
Thanks Cherie for the feedback! This was my very first video and I do realize the audio wasn't the best. I've been trying to improve that with other videos😀
I made mine a yr ago but forgot to strain can I still use
Hmmm it could still be good because alcohol is a very good preservative....but some things to think about...did you use dried berries? If you happened to use fresh (which I don't reccommend) then there might be too much water in it now. Also were the berries submerged in alcohol the whole time? If not toss it. Also what percentage or proof of alcohol did you use...the higher the better. Also was it stored in a dark place or in sunlight? Its really a judgment call...I know mamy who let their tinctures steep for a long long time lol...but if you're in doubt at all start a new one.
Do they have to be dried? I just got some ever clear and the berries are ripe. Trees are everywhere and I need to get on it today or tomorrow for a wintertime batch.
@@whiskeymonk4085 I prefer to tincture with dried elderberries. There are people who use fresh but it's just not my preference. I like dried for a couple of reasons....one heating elderberries even a little is said to help reduce the cynaide inducing substance in elderberries. There's limited information on this but my conclusion is that it helps. And two I don't like adding additional water content to Any of my tinctures or oils and in fresh berries and plants, there's always a fair amount of water content.
@@savoryandsage Thank you
Thanks for putting the written information in description with dosage. Its hard to remember everything.
Not a problem. I'm looking at doing an updated tincture making video, more of a general how to make a tincture. This was my first video and I know the sound was poor etc so thought a new updated one might be good. Stay tuned for that lol!
How are you drying them? And what’s the difference between tincture vs syrup? Sugar?
@@Tiabobia17 Right now I purchase my elderberries already dried because I don't have trees that produce yet lol. But if I had access to fresh elderberries I would dry them in a dehydrator prior to using them. Some people tincture with fresh berries but I prefer to dry mine. A tincture is made using a pure high proof clear alcohol to extract the medicinal qualities of the plant. It creates a very concentrated form of herbal medicine that you can then take when needed And because it's so concentrated, you only need tiny amounts. A syrup is not made using alcohol but usually just whatever herbs you are using with water, simmered and reduced and then sweetened with something like a raw honey. For elderberries, I actually much prefer a syrup because I add many other herbs to it that are beneficial to health and the immune system.
@savoryandsage thank you, darling! Very helpful. 🤗
Hi. Im wonder can you give it to children. Since its made with Alcohol. ?
I personally wouldn't give it to children. You can also make tinctures using glycerin that might be more suitable to children or those who prefer a non-alcohol version.
What would the measurements be.? The same way you make it with alcohol. Just using glycerin?
@clintonhofer9383 I have never made a glycerin based tincture so I'm certainly no expert at working with glycerin. Here is a link to a website that has some great information that you should find helpful: blog.mountainroseherbs.com/how-to-make-glycerin-extracts-glycerites
Have u ever made a garlic tincture. With Alcohol or glycerin?
@clintonhofer9383 I have never made a garlic tincture...interesting!!
Were any of those weeds around your little elderberry babies, actual weeds or herbs?
Good question! They were all viewed by most as "weeds"; however some of them do have medicinal qualities. There was definitely some red clover around those elderberry bushes, and possibly some plantain, both of which have medicinal qualities!
@@savoryandsage Ah, I couldn't tell for sure on the video, but I did think there was some wonderful red clover! 🤭
I thought elderberry has to be simmered 20-30 minutes to get rid of the cyanide in the raw berries. Does the alcohol get rid of the cyanide?
It's recommended to heat elderberries to get rid of the cyanide inducing substance you're right. It actually doesn't take much heat to rid it, apparently. Some people will actually add their tincture to a hot tea to make them feel more comfortable with taking it. A tincture is usually taken in much smaller quantities than a syrup so personally I don't worry about it...but thats a very personal choice and of course if any gastric upset is felt one should stop taking. To my knowledge alcohol does not denature this cyanide inducing substance but there is very limited info on it really.
@@savoryandsage if it doesn’t take much heat, I wonder if the dehydrating process is enough.
@Janice Crowell I was thinking the same thing actually
American elderberries you don't have to cook.
I have a ziplock bag of fresh elderberries from my sisters plant. There are a lot of little stems still attached. Do you think it’s ok to make the tincture with these little stems? Also should I boil before making tincture? Thanks! 💓
I would remove as much of the stems as possible. The stems have a higher level of the toxic compound than the berries do. If you have a scattered little piece of stem in there I wouldn't worry about that. Most herbal books and information will say you can make a tincture from fresh elderberries but personally I think it would be better to dry them first as drying is ssid to remove some of the toxic constituents as well. For me I would feel safer doing it that way even though you wouldn't be ingesting large quantities of a tincture...but that would be my personal opinion!
Thanks so much! I washed them and removed as much of the little pieces of stem as I could. There are some green ones mixed in as well. I’ll look up the drying process.
I would like to know how to make with fresh elderberry
Many people do use fresh elderberries for tinctures and a general rule of thumb when converting from dry to fresh berries is to add a slightly higher amount of berries to your tincture. So instead of using say a third of a jar of dried berries you could use about a half jar of fresh berries. I prefer to use dried for elderberries mainly because of the cyanide inducing substance in the seeds....exposure to heat deactivates the toxicity apparently and from what I understand dehydrating them can also possibly deactivate that. Solely for that reason I prefer dried berries but many certainly do use fresh! Keep in mind though that there is excess moisture in fresh berries so I would be especially careful that nothing floats to the surface and molds with exposure to air.
Have you ever made a vegetable glycerin tincure.
I haven't yet...someday I'm sure!
What about fresh, i have a tree on my property
Many people do use fresh elderberries for tinctures and a general rule of thumb when converting from dry to fresh berries is to add a slightly higher amount of berries to your tincture. So instead of using say a third of a jar of dried berries you could use about a half jar of fresh berries. I prefer to use dried for elderberries mainly because of the cyanide inducing substance in the seeds....exposure to heat deactivates the toxicity apparently and from what I understand dehydrating them can also possibly deactivate that. Solely for that reason I prefer dried berries but many certainly do use fresh! Keep in mind though that there is excess moisture in fresh berries so I would be especially careful that nothing floats to the surface and molds with exposure to air.
@@savoryandsageso we are exposed to toxin with fresh elderberries?
Where did you say you ordered the elderberries?
I ordered them from Organic Matters (omfoods.com)! I order a lot from them...good quality and great place to get bulk herbs etc...shipping can be a bit pricey but it still works out much better cost wise than buying small amounts locally for me.
Aren't you supposed to cook it first, I heard it makes you sick if you eat them raw????? 😮
There is very little information on this actually, but yes it is said that heating elderberries denatures this cyanide inducing substance found in the elderberry seeds and stems. It doesn't take much heat to do this apparently. Nonetheless, it really is a personal choice and preference to do this as many also have added raw elderberries to things for hundreds of years. I never use fresh elderberries for my tinctures, always dried. I'm not sure if the drying process denatures this substance or not. Some people will add their elderberry tinctures to hot teas as they feel more comfortable taking it this way. Also tinctures are taken in such small quantities, I personally don't worry about it, but again that's totally a personal preference. Hope this helps!