Finally, I prepared Zoborodo.
Zobo which happens to be my favourite native drink is a super drink and is slightly thick and tasty.
It is an ancient, local drink which is consumed in several part of the world. Zobo has a unique taste that makes it pleasurable to all classes of people. To be honest, I never liked zobo until the day I attended a program. I took a large quantity to the extent that my faeces was very black the following day. That made me inquisitive to know more about zobo.
Zobo (Nigerian) or Sorrel (Jamaican) is a red coloured drink made from a flower called Hibiscus sabdariffa. It is caffeine -free and has riboflavin, niacin, carotene, calcium , and iron, which are all nutritionally necessary.
Let’s take a look at ways by which Zobo drink is beneficial :
1) Thirst: Zobo is also known as Hibiscus Tea. It has been seen to be very effective in quenching thirst especially when served chilled. It can serve as an alternative to commercial sport drinks.
2) Helps Fight Hypertension: Hibiscus tea has some anti-hypertensive properties which helps reduce hypertension, cholesterol level, and high blood pressure.
3) Weight Loss: Zobo helps in reduction of dietary carbohydrate and hence can aid in weight loss especially if taking after food.
4) High Blood Pressure: The antihypertensive properties of hibiscus tea were noted by a study in which 70 people were involved; half of them drank hibiscus tea once daily and the other half took 25 mg of antihypertensive medicine twice daily. After a month, 79 percent of the tea drinkers experienced a ten point reduction in blood pressure, 84 percent of the ones that took pharmaceutical medicine also experienced the same reduction in blood pressure. Hibiscus is an antioxidant. It has properties that prevents the oxidation of low-density lipoproteins; a substance in our blood that if increased beyond normal quantities may cause high blood pressure.
How do you then prepare this drink?
INGREDIENTS
2 cups dried hibiscus flowers
5 cups water
Pineapple
Sugar to taste
1½ tbs grated ginger
1 clove of garlic
NOTE: Before you make the Zobo drink
1. Wash the dry Zobo leaves repeatedly in cold water. Zobo leaves are usually very dusty so make sure you wash off all the dust. It will seem like all the flavours/colour of the zobo are being washed off but don’t worry, you will see that the dry zobo leaves still have a lot of the colour intact when you start boiling it.
2. Wash, peel and cut the pineapple into thin slices. Some people add the peel of the pineapple when making the zobo drink but I don’t do this simply because I always think that dirt is stuck in the peels of pineapples.
3. Peel and cut the ginger and garlic into tiny pieces.
PROCEDURES
1. Put the washed zobo leaves into a deep pot.
2. Add the pineapples and pour enough water to cover the contents of the pot and then some.
3. Start cooking at medium to high heat and let it boil for 5 minutes.
4. Add the ginger and the garlic, add more water and keep boiling for at least 30 minutes. This is the time it will take for the zobo leaves to be completely soft and the pineapples tender.
5. Turn off the heat and set aside to cool
down completely.
6. When cool, wringe out the juice from the pineapples and zobo leaves, leaving only the zobo juice in the pot.
7. Pour the juice through a sieve to take out the remaining large particles then pour it through a chiffon cloth to remove the tiniest particles.
8. Add any artificial flavours of your choice at this time and stir. You can also add food flavors like pineapple, vanilla and berries for some diversity.
9. Pour into bottles and refrigerate.
Try replacing your sugar sweetened
drink with zobo drink now and always.
However, with all the nutritional benefits, rosalle has been found to stimulate menstrual flow effects. Therefore, women might probably want to reduce your intake during the monthly menstrual cycle.
NOTE: Zobo drink is not recommended to people in this category;
1. Pregnant woman or breastfeeding mothers as effects of zobo drink on child development is not yet studied.
2. If you’re currently on anti- inflammatory
medication, or taken drugs containing
Acetaminophen , such as Actifed , some cold & cough medicines like Codeine, and some pain relievers.
3. If you have low blood pressure, as zobo tea could lower your blood pressure further which could be bad for your health and if you’re driving or operating a heavy machinery, it is not advisable to take the drink as the tea sometimes causes drowsiness.
Now let’s make some Zobo drink for this
weekend; a time to relax from all the everyday hustle and struggle.
The drink can either be served hot or cold. Also, the amount of water used is based on
preference, you can adjust the water down or up. The drink stains easily, so be mindful when handling it.
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