Elderberry Syrup Instant Pot Recipe
If you are anything like me, you “Ain’t got time for that.” You don’t have time to spend hours standing over a stove, simmering, stirring and reducing. If you don’t have an Instant Pot yet, get one. I promise you that if my house was on fire, it would be one of the things that I grabbed on the way out. It is that much of a life saver. Forgot to start supper? Throw it in the instant pot. Need a soup or a stew that tastes like it simmered all day, but you only have an hour? Instant pot. Want to optimize your immune system for the winter months? Elderberry Syrup Instant Pot Recipe to the rescue!
Two years ago, the whole family got the flu. It was a miserable winter, and my son decided to get both Influenza A and B one after the other. His poor immune system just didn’t have an opportunity to recover between round 1 and 2. I determined that we would not have another year like that EVER AGAIN and set about researching ways to prevent or treat colds and flu naturally. I was surprised to find out that Elderberry Syrup was widely used for this purpose. Several studies show a substantial reduction in the number of days of cold and flu symptoms when elderberries were administered. See this article from PubMed:
Randomized study of the efficacy and safety of oral elderberry extract in the treatment of influenza A and B virus infections.
Zakay-Rones Z1, Thom E, Wollan T, Wadstein J.
Abstract
Elderberry has been used in folk medicine for centuries to treat influenza, colds and sinusitis, and has been reported to have antiviral activity against influenza and herpes simplex. We investigated the efficacy and safety of oral elderberry syrup for treating influenza A and B infections. Sixty patients (aged 18-54 years) suffering from influenza-like symptoms for 48 h or less were enrolled in this randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study during the influenza season of 1999-2000 in Norway. Patients received 15 ml of elderberry or placebo syrup four times a day for 5 days, and recorded their symptoms using a visual analogue scale. Symptoms were relieved on average 4 days earlier and use of rescue medication was significantly less in those receiving elderberry extract compared with placebo. Elderberry extract seems to offer an efficient, safe and cost-effective treatment for influenza.
Healthy AND Affordable for the Win!
The price of a small jar of this magical syrup at the pharmacy cost 14.99 and lasted less than two weeks, but I faithfully purchased jar after jar for my kids throughout the winter last year. They remained amazingly healthy. Not even a cold! This year, however, I am making my own Elderberry Syrup Instant Pot recipe for a fraction of the cost, and sacrificing none of the flavor!
My 3 year old asks for her “berry juice” every morning. I give her one teaspoon a day as a preventative. If she were to show signs of getting sick (hasn’t happened yet!) I would give her the same amount 3-4 times a day. She loves the flavor and tries to beg more off of me every day. The 13 year old is harder to impress, or perhaps he just plays it cooler. But he admits that it “Tastes like cinnamon, it’s not bad.” I give him the adult serving, 1 Tbsp per day, and would up it to 3x a day if he was sick.
This syrup also makes a delicious topping for ice cream, pancakes, etc. Enjoy in good health!
-Red
*I am not a medical professional. This recipe is not meant to convey medical advice. If you have any concerns about the ingredients or the use of this food with medication, please consult your physician.
Ingredients
- 1 Cup Organic Elderberries dried (Available through Amazon)
- 3 slices Fresh Ginger Root
- 1-2 Cinnamon Sticks
- 4 Cloves
- ½ lemon
- 4 cups distilled water
- 1 cup raw honey
Instructions
- Add all ingredients EXCEPT for the raw honey to the instant pot. Close and seal lid. Use the manual function and set the instant pot for 15 minutes. Use the quick release method to release the steam. Remove lid and pour contents of the instant pot through a strainer. Use a spoon to press the cooked berries, extracting the juice. Dispose of the berries, as well as lemon, ginger, cloves and ginger. Allow the mixture to cool to 100 degrees or less before adding your raw honey. This is to prevent destruction of the antibacterial and antiviral properties of the honey. If you want your Elderberry Syrup Instant Pot Recipe to yield a thicker syrup, after you quick release the pressure and remove the lid from your instant pot, set the pot to saute’. Stir your syrup occasionally until it reaches the desired consistency. Again, allow to cool before adding the honey. Pour into mason jars and store in your refrigerator. The number of jars and the number of servings depend on the consistency of your syrup.
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