Schisandra is one of the ways this top herb of Chinese herbalism with many benefits, which will be explored throughout this article. It can be consumed in many forms including schisandra teas, juice, smoothies and even alcohol.
If you have the fresh or dried berries you can make the tea yourself. Many companies also sell prepared tea bags. The third option is to use an extract or concentrate and mix this in the water. The great part about this is because of the extract, you’re getting the schisandra in more concentrated form. In addition, it’s ready to mix in water, no steeping or decocting necessary. For any of the following recipes substitute 1/8 to 1/2 of our schisandra concentrate or extract.
Schisandra Berry Tea Recipe #1
- 1 TB Schisandra Extract
- 1 Qt. Hot Water
Simply mix and enjoy. Doesn’t get much simpler than this.
Schisandra beautifies the skin. In Chinese medicine, it strengthens your “Wei Chi”, which is the defense chi of your body. It’s the first line of your body’s immune response and much more. As an astringent, it helps to tighten skin and tissues, helping to preserve moisture.
The following recipes contain several more ingredients to give you many more ideas.
Schisandra Berry Tea Recipe #2
- 1 quart water
- 3T Schizandra (soaked and drained)
- 1T goji berries
- 1T astragalus root
- 1t orange peel or a couple of pieces
- 1t fresh ginger root
Simmer the above ingredients in one quart of pure water for no longer than 15 minutes. Strain and drink alone with super sweeteners or allow to cool and blend into a smoothie or iced drink. (From here)
Schisandra detoxifies the liver. This is due primarily to antioxidants and lignan components including schizandrin, pregomisin, gomisins, and deoxyschizandrin. In China a drug was created out of schisandrin for this effect.
Schisandra Berry Tea Recipe #3
- 2 Tbsp Schisandra Berries
- 2 Tbsp Elderberries (optional)
- 6 small pieces of licorice root, broken into small pieces
- 5-6 inch knob of ginger peeled and coarsely chopped
- A palmful or two of dried eleuthero
- 1-2 Tbsp of dried green stevia leaves
- 1-2 cinnamon sticks, crushed
Combine everything (except for the stevia) in a saucepan and cover with 4 cups of water. Cover and bring to a boil.
Schisandra berry is one of the top adaptogens in the world. Schisandrin B stimulates the expression of heat shock proteins in normal cells which enhances mitochondrial glutathione status, other antioxidant activity and ATP generation. The Russians heavily investigated this and other adaptogens to support their athletes and soldiers.
Fermented Schizandra Berry Tea
- One tablespoon of water kefir grains
- One quart of water
- One cup of sugar
- One cup of dried schizandra berries
- Two cups of boiled water
- Two cups of pomegranate juice (cherry and raspberry juice are great too)
- Dissolve the sugar in the quart of water. (I recommend heating the water to help dissolve the sugar, but then allow the water to cool before the next step.)
- Put the water kefir grains in a clean quart jar and pour the cool sugar water over the grains. Let it sit for 24 hours.
- In the meantime, pour two cups of boiled water over the berries, cover, and let it sit and cool. (We have had no issues letting this sit for 24 hours.)
- After 24 hours, strain off the water kefir grains to use in another recipe. Set grains aside.
- In a half gallon jar, combine the sugar water, steeped berries with liquid, and the pomegranate juice or juice of your choice.
- Cover with a tea towel and let it ferment until it reaches your desired sweetness.
Combining the benefits of schisandra along with the benefits or a fermented drink. Sounds great. For more details on this recipe click here.
Schizandra is a great aphrodisiac. It’s not what many people think of, like other herbs such as tongkat ali and cistanche, but helps increase circulation, lubrication, sensitivity as well as libido for both men and women.
Schisandra Smoothie
- 2-3 Tablespoons of Schisandra Berry Syrup
- 2 cups Strawberries or Mixed Berries
- Vitamin C Powder ( 1000 mg. dose – I used ⅛ tsp.)
- 1½ cups of Homemade Yogurt, Coconut Yogurt or Coconut Milk
- 2-3 Tablespoons Coconut Oil, melted Pinch of Sea Salt
- 2-3 Tablespoons of Gelatin (cold soluble)
Add all ingredients into your blender, minus the coconut oil. Blend on high until smooth, slowly drizzle in the coconut oil. Serve.
More about this and how you can make schisandra syrup here.
Schisandra can help improve cognitive function, especially working with the memory and helping to sharpen mental capacities.
Schisandra Juice
In Asia it is common to infuse schisandra into other fruit juices. If you had fresh berries you could juice them but it wouldn’t be something you drink a lot of. But a little bit added to other juices can be great tasting and highly beneficial.
- 1 tsp to 1 TB schisandra berries or extract
- 1 cup to 1 gallon of dark fruit juice (I recommend tart cherry juice for its many benefits)
Allow to soak for a day. Strain and drink.
A whole book could be written on the benefits of this amazing herb. Because it contains all five flavors, which is a rare thing for one food to have, it enters all 12 meridians in the human body, and nourishes the five elements, water, wood, fire, earth and metal. In addition, it contains all three treasures, jing, qi and shen, all in one place.
Schisandra Ale
New Belgium, the brewing company behind the popular Fat Tire ale have used schisandra, as well as goji, in one of their limited releases, Springboard Ale.
What does an acupuncturist, a vivid dream, and wood barrels have in common? They all gave inspiration for Springboard Ale. It starts with our sustainability director’s acupuncturist. The acupuncturist had a dream about making a beer with New Belgium. And New Belgium had a brewmaster who was searching for the right ingredients to blend with our wood-aged beer.
So, the sustainability director, the acupuncturist, and the brewmaster gathered in front of a wall of Chinese herbs. The outcome of their brainstorm was Springboard Ale. While ingredients like Gogi berries and Schisandra might sound funny, the taste leaves you smiling for more. We like to refer to this cloudy blonde with a deliciously dry finish as our ale for the seasons of last runs and fresh starts.
Because of its wide range of benefits schizandra is a top anti-aging herb. It supports the immune system, has many antioxidants, lowers stress, and supports feelings of well-being. Really, what more do you need to live a healthy, happy, long life?
Schisandra Wine
While you could likely make a wine directly from schisandra berries, its probably going to be easier to get a similar effect by using it as an extract. Soak the berries in wine for several weeks or longer.
Schizandra is very enjoyable when soaked in red wine. It creates an excitingly potent and spicy wine drink. Full bodied reds are best. As schizandra is sour, it may be better to choose a sweeter wine. People who love Shiraz will love schizandra in wine!
We recommend 50 grams of Schizandra in 750ml of wine, but you can vary the amount to taste. Let the fruit soak for 1-2 weeks. Drink one small glass a day. Refrigerate unused portion.
You could also add the extract or concentrate to wine without having to let it sit there to extract.
Want to try any of these recipes? Or has this stimulated your own culinary creativity?
We also have the new high quality from fresh berries, organic schisandra 6:1 concentrate.
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liz says
Oh Just kidding I see that you recommend red wine. Ha!
liz says
What kind of wine should I soak them in? I have a recipe that recommends rice wine, but just curious if there is a better option.
Jane says
I soaked the berrys, drained and use the drained berry juice for tea. How much tea is safe to drink per day?
Zane Christopher says
Good question Jane. This is more then likely completely safe to drink repeatedly throughout the day. If you were consuming the berries with it (and not just the water you soaked them in) then the added sugar and tartness might be a lot over time. I bet it is tasty!
jovena says
where i can buy schizandra juice or tea in Philippines?
Mikayla Gibson says
I actually do not know – you can purchase the schisandra berry powder from us and make tea or juice with it.
marian sanchez says
how much shisandra tea and where to buy?
Logan Christopher says
You can use these recipes to make your own Schisandra tea using our Organic Schisandra extract – https://lostempireherbs.com/product/schisandra