Infusion

	Email		Print
	Bookmark		Link

Infusion

An infusion is the outcome of steeping plants with a desired flavour in water

Water

Water is a common chemical substance that is essential for the survival of all known forms of life. In typical usage, water refers only to its liquid form or States of matter, but the substance also has a solid state, ice, and a gaseous state, water vapor or steam....
or oil.

An infusion is very similar to a decoction

Decoction

Discussion

Ask a question about 'Infusion'

Start a new discussion about 'Infusion'

Answer questions from other users

Full Discussion Forum

Encyclopedia

An infusion is the outcome of steeping plants with a desired flavour in water

Water

Decoction

A decoction is a method of solvent extraction of herbal or plant material, which includes, but is not limited to:*Stems*Roots*Barkand*Rhizomes....
but is used with herbs that are more volatile or dissolve readily in water, or release their active ingredients easily in oil. Boiling water is poured over the herb (or water of the appropriate temperature) and allow to steep for a time, usually 15 to 30 minutes or until the mix cools. The mix is then strained, bottled, and refrigerated for future use. Quantities of the herb/water or oil mix will vary according to the herb or how strong the infusion is required to be. A common proportion used is one ounce of herb to one pint of liquid.

Examples

Herb

A herb is a plant that is valued for qualities such as medicinal properties, flavor, scent, or the like....
s or other plants can be placed in boiling water for a few minutes, then discarded, and the water drunk as a beverage. A common example is tea

Tea

Tea refers to the agricultural products of the leaves, leaf buds, and internodes of the Camellia sinensis plant, prepared and cured by various methods....
. Many other drinks, often called herbal teas although they may contain no tealeaves, are prepared in this way. Lemon, chamomile, senna, apple, ginger, rooibos

Rooibos

Rooibos, , Afrikaans for "red bush"; biological classification Aspalathus linearis) is a Broom -like member of the Fabaceae family of plants....
, and a great many other plants are used individually or in combination. Infusions of this type are sometimes drunk for pleasure; others are claimed to be advantageous for health

Health

In 1948, the World Health Organisation defined health as ?a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.? ...
. A longer time before straining results in a bitter-tasting infusion. Herbal remedies and herb-infused oils are prepared with dried or fresh herbs, flower

Flower

A flower, sometimes known as a bloom or blossom, is the reproduction structure found in flowering plants . The biological function of a flower is to mediate the union of male sperm with female ovum in order to produce seeds....
s or berries, infused in oil

Oil

An oil is a chemical substance that is in a viscosity liquid state at room temperature or slightly warmer, and is both hydrophobic and lipophilic ....
or water. The herb/botanical is then removed from the oil and the oil is used in herbalism

Herbalism

Herbalism is a traditional medicinal or folk medicine practice based on the use of plants and plant extracts. Herbalism is also known as botanical medicine, medical herbalism, herbal medicine, herbology, and phytotherapy....
in those preparations that require short-term infused oils. Plants with desirable flavours may be steeped in an edible oil or vinegar

Vinegar

Vinegar is an acidic liquid processed from the fermentation of ethanol in a process that yields its key ingredient, acetic acid . It also may come in a diluted form....
for an extended period; the infused oil or vinegar is often sold still containing the plant, and is then used as flavouring. Chillies, lemon, garlic, and many other plants may be used. There can be ambiguity: for example, what is described as sesame oil

Sesame oil

Sesame oil is an edible vegetable oil derived from sesame seeds. Besides being used as a cooking oil in South India, it is often used as a flavor enhancer in Chinese cuisine, Taiwanese cuisine, Korean cuisine, and to a lesser extent, Southeast Asian cuisine....
may be oil extracted from sesame

Sesame

Sesame is a flowering plant in the genus Sesamum. Numerous wild relatives occur in Africa and a smaller number in India. It is widely naturalization in tropical regions around the world and is cultivated for its edible seeds, which grow in pods....
seed

Seed

A seed is a small Plant embryogenesis plant enclosed in a covering called the seed coat, usually with some Food storage. It is the product of the ripened ovule of gymnosperm and angiosperm plants which occurs after fertilization and some growth within the mother plant....
s, or an inferior quality vegetable oil infused with sesame.

The first recorded use of essential oils was in the 10th century by the Muslim Persian

Persian people

Persian identity, at least in terms of language, is traced to the ancient Indo-Iranians , who arrived in parts of Greater Iran circa 2000-1500 BCE....
chemist

Chemist

A chemist is a scientist trained in the science of chemistry. Chemists study the composition of matter and its properties such as density, acidity, size and shape....
Avicenna

Avicenna

, known as Abu Ali Sina Balkhi or Ibn Sina and commonly known in English by his Latinized name Avicenna , was a Persian people polymath and the foremost Islamic medicine and Early Islamic philosophy of his time....
.

Infusion

Examples

See also