Fireweed

I love tea! Black tea…herbal tea…tea…tea…tea…that warm goodness that steeps into your hands on a cold winter day. mmm. Being of English decent I just can’t help myself. Each morning that perfect cup of tea calls to me. English breakfast with the perfect combination of cream and sugar. mmm mmm mmm. There is only one problem to this cup of goodness… and that is caffeine. There are a few downsides of overloading your system with caffeine every day - one of them is sleep disturbance. Who needs that?! BUT I am not here to discus the downsides of caffeine… I am here to give you another option! That could be FREE! Yes that’s right! AND it might be growing right in your back yard!!

Let’s talk about the herb called fireweed (Chamaenerion angustifolium). I’ve observed it growing here locally in North Idaho throughout my lifetime. The summer arrives and brings with it the tall spires of pink flowers that grace the horizon. Standing tall and proud sometimes the only beauty after a fire has passed through an area. This plant doesn’t just have pretty pink flower though… this plant boasts many benefits. The leaves, stems and flowers can all be used. In fact its had a long history of being used throughout Russia and many other nations.

Fireweed growing behind our goat barn

What can you make with fireweed? Well I’m glad you asked… You can make fireweed tea by simply drying the leaves and flowers. You can make an amazing jelly with the leaves and flowers, or make it even better by mixing different herbs with it like borage, like one of my favorite YouTube channels has done (Simple Living Alaska), you can make simple syrup with the flowers to use in lemonade and you can make salves to help with inflammation, but I have to say my absolute favorite way to utilize this herb is to make Ivan Chai - a tea made with the fermented leaves of the plant.

Borage and Fireweed

Ivan Chai was the first imported tea into England. It was a main stay for my fellow brits before India introduced the black tea that is now used. While black tea is caffeinated its counterpart Ivan Chai is naturally non-caffeinated. When I learned about the process of making Ivan Chai I instantly knew I had to try it. I was not hopeful it would make a replacement for my beloved black tea - and I will say now that it has certainly not made it to that status, however the flavor is outstanding and this is one tea you will not want to miss having on your shelf.

After watching many many tutorials and reading several recipes I decided upon the method I was going to use. I would like to share that with you so you can make your very own batch.

Freshly harvested fireweed leaves and flowers

Begin by harvesting the leaves of the fire weed plant. While Ivan Chai is traditionally only made with the leaves you can also make fireweed tea out of both the leaves and the flowers. I went ahead and made both fireweed tea and Ivan Chai so I could taste the difference and see if the more complicated process of Ivan Chai was worth the effort. If you only harvest the the leaves from the lower portion of the stem and leave the stock to flower it will both set new plants by seed and by underground runner ensuring you have a healthy patch of fireweed for years to come.

Drying herbs for winter: Top to bottom; wild rose, fireweed leaves and flowers, chamomile, mullein, red clover, self heal and California poppy.

Once you have harvested your fireweed leaves bring them inside to wilt overnight - up to 24 hours. You want to be able to roll the leaves in the palm of your hand without them breaking. Don’t let them get to dry or they will crumble during the rolling process.

Rolling technique.

Once the leaves have wilted overnight begin rolling the leave firmly in your hands as the picture above shows. I tried several different positions and this one was the most effective. While I have seen others roll several leaves as the same time I found I was better as just one or two. You really want to bruise the leaves and have them roll up nice and tight while will aid the fermenting process.

What the leaves should look like after they’ve been rolled.

Once you’ve rolled the leaves place them loosely in a glass jar for the fermentation process. I used a canning jar and a regular lid for mine and it worked great! I left them for 72 hours - but depending on how warm your house is you may want to check it before then… or if your house runs cold like mine it may take a little longer than 72 hours. Every once in a while give the contents a good shake or stir so that it ferments evenly. Now I did notice that some more traditional teas were fermented with other flowers such as peony or rose, but I decided to do mine simply so I could see what it would taste like. If you choose to add in other flowers do it at the beginning of the fermentation process.

This is what the fireweed leaves looked like after 72 hours of fermentation.

It is time to stop the fermentation process when the leaves become very dark in color and aromatic. Really how long you ferment is up to your preference. Generally speaking the process has taken me a couple of days but it could take up to five if your house is on the cool side. I just made sure to open the jar and take a good smell every so often and when I was happy with it I moved on to the next step.

When you are happy with the taste and smell of the leaves it is time to stop the fermentation process and finish off your lovely Ivan Chai. This is not as complicated as it sounds. Just take the leaves out of the jar and spread them on either a cookie sheet or a dehydrator rack. Place them in the oven or dehydrator under 120 degrees F. until the are dry and crumble easily. I used my dehydrator at 110 degrees F. it took several hours. You definitely want to be sure they are completely dry because if you don’t they will mold. Yes… I learned this the hard way. Whoops. Once the leaves have cooled to room temperature and you are sure they are sufficiently dry you can store them in an air tight container. I use glass mason jars with a canning lid. Then I store it in a cool dark cupboard.

For the best tasting tea let the leaves mellow in the jar for several months before making a cup of delicious tea. shhh…. I tired it right away and it was delicious - but honestly it was way better mid winter on a cold snowy day cuddled up by the fire….just sayin….

There you have it! Will you make your very own Ivan Chia this year???