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    Wild Blog

    What is Rooibos Tea?

    What is Rooibos Tea?

    Rooibos tea is a popular herbal tea from a native South African plant.

    It wasn't until 1772 when the Swedish naturalist, Carl Thunberg, noted that local South African tribes were making brews from rooibos plants.

    These tribal people would climb the mountains, remove the leaves from the shrubs, and bring them down the slopes on their backs.

    Rooibos must be good to go through all that.

    During this time, importing black tea was too expensive for the local settlers, so rooibos became a cheaper alternative.

    Rooibos Cultivation

    The small Western Cape province of South Africa is a mountainous region ideal for growing this higher-altitude plant.

    Within the Cederberg area of this region, most of the world's production of rooibos is grown and cultivated. The Mediterranean climate and acidic sandy soil make it a perfect part for rooibos to thrive.

    Rooibos is a resilient crop, often having to withstand the frequent droughts of the region. In short, the rooibos plant thrives on less water and at higher altitudes.

    In recent years, farmers have feared that weather extremes threaten rooibos crops. Freezing temperatures during the winter were rare until recently.

    According to rooibos farmer Willem Engelbrecht, "In the past, we used to plow the soil, these days, we plow less, and we keep material on the soil to act as isolation, basically to preserve the moisture."

    Many farmers wonder how much longer they can adapt to the evolving weather conditions.

    The best rooibos farmers rotate crops every 4 - 7 years. It takes approximately 1 - 2 years before the soil is ready for a rooibos tree.

    Processing Rooibos

    Traditional rooibos leaves are harvested by hand and cut into 5 mm pieces.

    Then the farmer adds water to the heap of leaves and bruises them to enhance the oxidation process. While fermenting (or "sweating") for 8 - 24 hours, the leaves turn red and brown, enhancing the flavor.

    Rooibos is usually dried in particular yards or large ovens with specific temperatures. While large-scale rooibos cultivation uses ranges to maintain consistency and quality, sun drying is known to aid in the flavor development of the tea.

    Next, the rooibos is graded by a board, which evaluates flavor and color—similar to the "cupping" process of testing coffee beans.

    The three grades—super, choice, and standard—are subjected to strict testing before being sent to distributors. It won't be available for export if the batch doesn't pass specific microbiological tests.

    Traditional rooibos is known as "red tea," named for the color of the leaves and the red brew it produces.

    But there are other kinds of rooibos on the market. Green rooibos, which is rooibos that has not been oxidized or fermented, is an expensive and considered more nutritious version of loose-leaf tea.

    To create green rooibos, farmers skip fermentation and sun-dry the leaves immediately. It prevents the red color from developing.

    After the tea is processed, it is sent to distributors before being packaged and ready for sale.

    Rooibos is a reasonably new phenomenon in the global tea market compared to traditional tea. A Russian immigrant named Benjamin Ginsberg was the first to package and sell rooibos tea in the early 20th century.

    Today, 12,000 tons of rooibos are sold to hundreds of countries worldwide.

    Rooibos has one of the most exciting and unique flavor profiles of any herbal tea. It complements other flavors, such as cinnamon, ginger, apple, and berries.

    A Delicious Brew Of Rooibos

    Given that rooibos was initially used as a replacement for black tea, it is no wonder the methods of brewing and drinking are similar.

    The rooibos leaves are steeped in hot water and then allowed to cool before adding sugar and milk to taste. At Wild Foods, we love rooibos with a dash of honey and lemon. (It's also delicious as is.)

    Rooibos Health Benefits

    Because rooibos tea does not contain caffeine, it is popular amongst a new crowd of individuals who want to avoid stimulation.

    Compared to green and black tea, it has few amino acids but is full of antioxidant support.

    Furthermore, red rooibos has many polyphenols and flavanols, some of which are not found in green or black tea.

    Many of these are responsible for the anti-inflammatory effects of red rooibos, which are often used as local remedies for arthritis and other inflammatory diseases.

    Like honeybush, rooibos's antioxidants help improve insulin sensitivity and combat diabetes.

    Rooibos is often used to improve glucose uptake after a meal.

    Rooibos contains micronutrients and minerals, such as iron, calcium, and potassium, which are lacking in the average Western diet.

    Rooibos - How To Begin

    A great place to start is trying one of our delicious rooibos options:

    Wild Tea #1 Coconut Chai - Spiced Chai red rooibos with cinnamon, ginger, and coconut flakes.

    Delicious Tea Recipes

    Tea is a more versatile ingredient than many think.

    It's not just for drinking as a hot or cold beverage. Tea is an excellent base for making other drinks like smoothies, shakes, iced teas, etc.

    Here are a few of our favorite tea recipes.

    Honeybush Tea Cultivation

    Growing honeybush tea is arduous but yields great tasting results for herbal tea lovers.

    The honeybush tree grows in small parts of South Africa, particularly in the southeast and southwest regions of the country. The plant enjoys the climate by the coast, but even in its natural environment, expert farmers work tirelessly to create the best-tasting honeybush teas.

    Before planting honeybush plants, a farmer must come with the highest quality seeds. One way of testing seed quality is putting roots in a jug of water to see which float. Any source that floats is determined unfit for planting and is discarded.

    The next step is treating the seed; the farmer will damage the outer seed shell to encourage moisture uptake during germination.

    A typical day for a South African honeybush (or rooibos) farmer during the harvesting season—January to April—looks like this: Farmers leave home at 5:00 am to turn fermentation heaps on the drying yard (where honeybush and rooibos are laid out to dry). After continuing this for most of the day, the farmer heads home around nightfall after a mere 13 hours of hard labor.

    But man, does honeybush tea taste so good! Thank you, farmers!

    The honeybush plant grows best in extreme climates, making cultivation and growing even more difficult. The plant enjoys extreme weather conditions and must be cultivated during heavy rainfall during the coldest part of the year.

    Harvesting Honeybush Tea

    The tea itself is made from the shoots of the shrub. To process honeybush, farmers chop the stems and leaves into small pieces.

    Once chopped into small pieces, the wet heap is left alone to ferment.

    This process usually requires an oven set to 60 - 70 degrees C.

    After drying, the delicious golden red bits are ready for export.

    Enjoying Delicious Honeybush Tea

    Unlike green tea, which changes in flavor after long brewing, it is possible to leave honeybush brewing for many minutes without getting a bitter cup of tea.

    Many South African locals brew honeybush on the stove to fill their homes with a pleasant aroma until they are ready to consume the sweet herbal beverage.

    In the traditional tea style, honeybush is often consumed with milk and sugar, but doing so makes it impossible to enjoy the subtle flavor of the tea itself. We recommend trying it straight and adding a bit of honey and lemon until you find your preferred taste.

    People often compare honeybush flavor to apricot jam or a dried fruit mix. We find that a dash of lemon and honey makes for a perfect cup of honeybush tea!

    While hot honeybush tea is typical, it is possible to create a delicious iced honeybush tea. Brew using the hot method, then let cool and pour over ice.

    Honeybush Health Benefits

    Like the rooibos plant, honeybush is relatively low in amino acids compared to traditional tea, although it has plenty of antioxidants.

    It is caffeine-free, which makes it popular with those that want a warm, flavorful, and rich drink at night.

    As early as 1881, the Khoisan, an indigenous people of South Africa, was recorded using honeybush to treat coughs and upper respiratory problems.

    Today, it is used for the same purpose, and modern science points toward a chemical in the plant called "pivotal," which is known to soothe the throat and lungs.

    Beyond soothing coughs, pinitol has blood-sugar-lowering effects in laboratory studies and thus helps fight against diabetes and inflammation.

    Honeybush is one of our favorite herbal teas and earned its spot.

    There's a reason it's becoming one of the more popular herbal teas on the market, and I highly recommend learning why this is for you!

    Tea Recipes

    Hibiscus-Pomegranate Iced Tea

    Ingredients:

    • 1/4 cup Wild Tea #3 Hibiscus Mint Tea
    • 4 cups boiling water
    • 1 cup pomegranate juice
    • 4 cups cold water
    • Lemon wedges, for garnish

    Process:

    1. Steep tea in hot water for 5 minutes
    2. Strain tea into a large pitcher
    3. Stir in pomegranate juice and cold water
    4. Refrigerate until chilled, about 2 hours
    5. Serve over ice with lemon wedges

    Green Jasmine-Mint Iced Tea

    I ingredients:

    • 1/4 cup Wild Tea #8 Green Jasmine Loose Leaf Tea
    • 1/2 cup mint leaves
    • 4 cups 195° water
    • 4 cups cold water
    • 1/2 cup lemon juice
    • 1/3 cup honey

    Process:

    1. Steep tea for 3 minutes in hot water
    2. Strain into a large pitcher
    3. Stir in lemon juice and honey until the honey is dissolved
    4. Add cold water
    5. Refrigerate until chilled, about 2 hours
    6. Serve over ice with some sprigs of mint for a garnish

    Lemongrass-Lavender Green Tea

    Ingredients:

    • 16 cups cool water
    • Three sprigs mint
    • 1/2 cup green tea
    • One tablespoon of dried lemongrass
    • One tablespoon of dried lavender
    • Optional: honey, xylitol, stevia, coconut sugar

    Process:

    1. Pour water into a large pitcher
    2. Add mint, tea, lemongrass, and lavender
    3. Brew in the fridge for 24 hours
    4. Sweeten to desired taste
    5. Strain the tea and serve with ice 

    Blueberry Matcha Slushy

    Ingredients:

    • 2 Tablespoons Wild Matcha
    • 1 or 2 Tablespoons of raw honey or the sweetener of your choice (adjust sweetness to taste)
    • 1 cup organic frozen blueberries
    • ½ cup organic pomegranate, apple, or orange juice
    • 200g ice cubes

    Process:

    1. Whisk Matcha powder into 1/3 cup cold water until thick
    2. Add 1/3 cup 175° water to the mixture and whisk
    3. Add sweetener of choice and stir until completely incorporated
    4. Set aside until cool
    5. Add blueberries, juice, prepared Matcha tea, and ice cubes to a blender and blend until smooth
    6. Serve

    Coconut Matcha Latte

    Ingredients:

    • 1 TSP Wild Matcha
    • ¼ cup 175° water
    • ¼ cup warmed coconut milk
    • Optional sweetener of your choice

    Process:

    1. Sift Matcha into a bowl to prevent lumping
    2. Add 1 TBSP of cool water to Matcha and stir into the paste
    3. Add hot water and whisk until frothy
    4. Add warm coconut milk and whisk until frothy
    5. Taste and add water, coconut milk, and sweetener to desired taste 

    Mango Tea Smoothie

    Ingredients:

    • 3/4 cup almond or coconut milk
    • 1/2 cup choice tea (experiment!)
    • One sliced mango
    • 1/3 cup ice
    • One frozen banana
    • Optional berries/additions

    Process:

    1. Blend all ingredients until smooth.
    2. Experiment with amounts to perfect your smoothie concoction!

    Is Chicken Keto

    is-chicken-keto

    Keeping your carbs in check is a challenging task. Especially if you’re trying to follow a low-carb diet, where most high-carbohydrate foods are banned. Luckily enough, some high-protein foods are also low in carbs.

    Chicken skin is one of those foods with almost no carbohydrates but high protein content simultaneously. Moreover, chicken skin has no fat or cholesterol and has lots of vitamins and minerals such as niacin, iron, phosphorus, selenium, zinc, and B6.

    What are the benefits of Chicken Skin?

    Getting a lot of protein is one of the most crucial advantages of eating chicken skin. The typical chicken skin can have around 15 grams of protein for every 100 grams. Protein is an essential nutrient for the human body. It helps grow and repair tissues such as muscles, skin, hair, and nails.

    Plus, protein is also necessary for adequately functioning the body’s organs. Chicken skin is also rich in minerals. It contains a good amount of calcium, phosphorus, iron, zinc, and selenium.

    All these minerals are essential for the body. Iron is necessary for red blood cells, phosphorus is needed for healthy teeth and bones, zinc is necessary for metabolism, and selenium is required for the immune system. Calcium is also essential for strong bones and teeth.

    How many carbs are in chicken skin?

    One of the most common questions about chicken skin is its number of carbs. The first thing to mention here is that chicken skin has no carbs. Chicken skin doesn’t have any fat or cholesterol, either. And what’s even more important is that it has a high protein content with around 15 grams of protein per 100 grams.

    The only thing that might confuse some people is that chicken skin is also called poultry skin in some parts of the world. It can create confusion about whether it contains carbs, as poultry skin has some carbs. The carbs in poultry skin come from protein sources and fats used for cooking.

    How to eat Chicken Skin?

    As we have mentioned earlier, chicken skin has no carbs in it. So how do you eat it? Well, the best way to eat chicken skin is to fry it.

    The high temperatures will make sure there are no carbs in the chicken skin whatsoever. So make sure to cook it well and put high temperatures to ensure it is crispy.

    Another way to eat chicken skin is to make some crispy chicken skin chips. They are also easy to make and taste delicious. To make the chips, you need to cut the chicken skin into small squares or other shapes, put them on a baking tray, put some olive oil or some other oil that won’t turn into trans fats when frying, and then bake them for about 10 minutes.

    Is Chicken skin Keto friendly?

    Yes, chicken skin is keto-friendly. It is one of the best keto foods you can find. The high protein content and zero carbs in chicken skin make it a delicious keto food that you can eat with almost every meal. The best way to eat chicken skin is to fry it or make crispy chicken skin chips.

    Are there any side effects of eating Chicken Skin?

    Since chicken skin has no carbs, you can enjoy it whenever you like. But, if you have some health conditions, you should consult your doctor first. It is essential to consult your doctor if you have high blood pressure, diabetes, or heart problems.

    It is also recommended to eat fried foods sparingly. It is because fried foods are high in trans fats and can increase the risk of heart disease, diabetes, and some cancers.

    Summary

    Chicken skin is a delicious keto snack that has no carbs at all. To enjoy this fantastic snack, you can fry it or make some crispy chicken skin chips. Ensure you fry it nicely to avoid trans fats and enjoy the delicious taste of flaky chicken skin.

    If you like chicken and are on a keto diet, then there is no better snack than chicken skin. It is high in protein, low in carbs, and has no fat. Make sure to fry chicken skin well to avoid trans fats.

    Eating chicken skin can be an enjoyable and tasty experience. So, what are you waiting for? Enjoy eating delicious and crispy chicken skin.

    Keeping track of what you eat for a healthy and sustainable lifestyle is essential. On the other hand, knowing what is in your food is also crucial. With so many different types of food and diets, it can take time to keep up.

    Is Pork Keto

    is-pork-keto

    The ketogenic diet has proven to be a reliable way to lose weight and improve your health. However, this doesn't mean it's restrictive in its variety of foods. In fact, with the right approach and preparation, you can enjoy a range of keto-friendly foods such as pork.

    Pork is widely available as a meat alternative because it is cheaper and more sustainable than red meat. It's also a source of essential nutrients, including protein, zinc, iron, selenium, and vitamins B1 and B6.

    What Makes Pork Keto-Friendly?

    Pork is keto-friendly because it's high in protein, low in carbohydrates, and rich in flavor. The macronutrient ratio of pork is approximately 50% fat, 40% protein, and 5% carbohydrate. This makes it an excellent option for keto dieters who need a high-protein, low-carbohydrate food source.

    Also, pork is free of dairy, gluten, legumes, and other common allergens. It makes it an excellent choice for those looking to adopt a plant-based diet.

    However, it's important to note that pork isn't always 100% keto-friendly. It's essential to review the nutritional breakdown of the pork you plan to eat because some slices of pork can be heavy in carbohydrates.

    Timing on a Keto Diet

    When you're first starting on the keto diet, it's essential to ease yourself in gradually. This will help you avoid experiencing unpleasant "keto flu" symptoms, including fatigue, irritability, and nausea.

    Additionally, it's an excellent technique to ensure that your body has adapted adequately to the new diet. One way to do this is by timing your intake of certain foods.

    For example, you can eat chicken, pork, and other "keto-friendly" foods for dinner. You'll be able to enter ketosis as you sleep, allowing you to awaken feeling energized and prepared to go.

    How to Eat Pork on a Keto Diet

    Pork can feature in many keto-friendly meals. As long as you are careful about portion sizes, you can enjoy pork in sandwiches, salads, tacos, and any other meal you can think of.

    One of the healthiest ways to enjoy pork on a keto diet is with a pork chop recipe. You can prepare a pork chop by coating it with salt, pepper, and a little oil before roasting it in the oven at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for around 20 minutes. Serve with a side of broccoli for an easy, healthy, and keto-friendly meal.

    Is Pork Healthy on the Keto Diet?

    Pork is nutrient-rich, high-protein meat that is naturally keto-friendly. It is an excellent source of iron, zinc, selenium, and B vitamins. It is also a great source of tryptophan, a precursor to serotonin, which can improve mood and promote relaxation.

    Overall, pork is an excellent choice for those following a keto diet. It is an excellent source of vitamins and minerals and is high in protein and low in carbohydrates. However, some cuts of pork are higher in carbs, so it's necessary to check the nutritional breakdown before eating.

    Tips for Buying and Cooking Pork on a Keto Diet

    When purchasing pork, there are a few things to look out for to ensure it's keto-friendly. Pork labeled "organic" is raised with fewer antibiotics and pesticides, making it a healthier option. Pork labeled "pasture-raised" was raised outdoors on a pasture, which is a healthier environment for the pigs than indoor factory farming.

    You should also check the nutritional breakdown of your pork before buying it. This guide will be a useful starting point if you need help figuring out where to look. It will help you ensure that you are purchasing good cuts of pork and cutting down on the amount of junk you're putting into your body.

    Conclusion

    Pork is a fantastic protein source and contains many vitamins and minerals, including thiamine, selenium, zinc, and niacin. Tryptophan, a key component of serotonin, is also abundant in it. It is also a great source of tryptophan, a precursor to serotonin.

    Eating a diet rich in pork can help you to maintain a healthy weight, regulate your mood, and boost your immune system. You can enjoy pork in all its delicious forms with the proper preparation and cooking. It's essential to choose the right cuts of pork and pay attention to portion sizes so that you don't exceed your daily carb limit.