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Wedang uwuh
Spiced herbal infusion
Wedang uwuh: Imogiri's ruby-red infusion of sappan wood, ginger, clove and cinnamon
The name means 'rubbish drink', because a glass looks like a jumble of twigs and leaves, but around the royal tombs at Imogiri, south of Yogyakarta, wedang uwuh is a point of pride. Chips of sappan wood stain hot water a deep ruby red, while ginger, clove, cinnamon, nutmeg leaf and rock sugar give a sweet, woody spice. It is sold by roadside warung as a dry pack to brew at home. Chef's tip: steep it, don't boil it for long; sappan wood turns from red to a muddy brown and tastes tannic if cooked hard.
- Total time
- 15 min
- Difficulty
- easy
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
- 1 ⅜ oz fresh gingercharred, sliced and bruised
- 6 cloves
- 1 cinnamon stickbroken
- 4 dried nutmeg leaves (optional)or a few gratings of nutmeg
- 2 ⅞ oz rock sugar
- 1 litre water
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Method
0/3 doneStep 1: Bring 1 litre water to the boil with 1 ⅜ oz fresh ginger, 6 cloves and 1 cinnamon stick and simmer for 5 minutes.
5 minStep 2: Turn off the heat and add ⅓ oz sappan wood chips (secang), 4 dried nutmeg leaves, 2 kaffir lime leaves and 2 ⅞ oz rock sugar. Stir until the sugar dissolves and leave to steep until the water turns a clear ruby red.
5 minStep 3: Serve hot, either strained or with the spices left in the glass as they do in Imogiri, or chill it and pour over ice.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 80 kcal
- Protein
- 0 g
- Carbs
- 21 g
- Fat
- 0 g
- Fibre
- 0 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does wedang uwuh take?
- About 15 minutes in total: 5 minutes to prepare and 10 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegan?
- Yes. It has no meat, fish, dairy or eggs.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- What can I use instead of fresh ginger?
- ¼ tsp ground ginger per tbsp fresh (add it with the spices).
- What can I use instead of cloves?
- Ground cloves, ¼ tsp for every 3 whole cloves.
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