Easy Homemade Fire Cider with herbs

September 27, 2026

reading time: 3 min

Whether I have a cough or a cold, or my digestion is sluggish, I turn to Fire Cider, the pungent folk remedy known for strengthening the immune system and stimulating circulation. The mixture of vinegar and honey, often infused with healing herbs, has a long history as a medicinal concoction called oxymel - the word literally meaning "acid and honey" in Ancient Greek. What sets Fire Cider apart from its acidic ancestor is its eponymous use of hot spices, such as ginger, garlic, cayenne pepper, and horseradish. The name and formula have been popularized by renowned herbalist Rosemary Gladstar in the 1980s, and have spread and shape-shifted around the globe ever since.

The great thing about Fire Cider is that it uses common "cooking" ingredients that are probably inhabiting your kitchen cabinets this very moment. And what's even better - it can easily be adjusted to your liking, such as by adding potent garden herbs and wild herbs as I do for my own Fire Ciders. Get creative and play around!

While every rendition of my Fire Cider is slightly different, depending on the season and my mood, I always use onions, garlic and ginger as my base. Then I take what's available in my garden (usually that's thyme, rosemary, and sage, in the warmer months also oregano, nasturtium and lemon balm) as well as whichever wild herbs are growing abundantly at that time - for example, wild garlic and chickweed in spring, and wood avens and golden dead-nettle in autumn. Lastly, I add some sort of citrus fruit such as orange, lemon or lime.

HOMEMADE FIRE CIDER with herbs

Preparation time: 15 mins (+ 4 weeks of infusing)
Main ingredients: apple cider vinegar, herbs and spices
difficulty level: easy
makes: 500 ml / 2 cups
suitable for: vegan, lactose-free, fat-free, gluten-free, nut-free, low sodium

Ingredients

500 ml (2 cups) raw apple cider vinegar (I use my homemade apple cider vinegar for this! I have even used "kombucha vinegar" for this, which is just over-fermented kombucha, or you could do a mixture of both)

1 large red onion

6 cloves of garlic
thumb-sized piece of ginger root

thumb-sized piece of turmeric root

thumb-sized piece of horseradish root

1 lemon or orange with peel, organic!

1 bunch of fresh herbs (e.g. thyme, rosemary, sage, oregano, nasturtium, lemon balm, nettle, creeping charlie, goutweed, dandelion, calendula, chamomile, yarrow... depending on season and availability)

6 black pepper corns
1/2 tsp dried chilli pepper
2-4 tbsp of raw honey or local honey, or to taste (replace with maple syrup or homemade dandelion honee for a vegan version!)

Other herbs and spices you could use:

- cinnamon sticks

- cloves

- lemon verbena

- tulsi

- hibiscus

- cranberries

- rosehips

- elderberries

- fir needles

- wood avens

- black radish

- galangal

...

Instructions

Finely chop or grate your solid ingredients, except for the citrus fruits. Halve and slice citrus fruits.

Place all ingredients into a large glass jar or bottle. Pour in enough apple cider vinegar to completely cover everything generously.

Seal with a tight-fitting lid (see notes below!) and shake to mix.

Set aside to infuse in a warm place. Shake the jar daily or every few days.

After 4 weeks, strain out the herbs (see notes below!) and reserve the liquid. Add in honey to your liking, until the vinegar has your preferred blend of spicy, sour and sweet.

Stored in a dark, cool cupboard or in the fridge, this fire cider will keep for several months up to a year.

Take 1-2 tablespoons daily as a daily shot or mixed into a beverage, such as water or apple juice.

NOTES:
- If you are using a metal lid, place a small piece of parchment paper between the lid and the jar, to prevent the acidity to corrode the metal.

- Compost the strained herbs or - better yet! - use them in a stir-fry, stew or soup.

- Actually, you could even skip the straining of the herbs and leave them in the liquid. When taking a spoonful of Fire Cider, simply eat the herbs as well.

- Combined with olive oil, Fire Cider makes a wonderful zesty salad dressing.

Other amazing beverages you might enjoy: