Recipe: Florence's Weigh Spicy Zesty Zobo Drink

Zobo is a Nigerian beverage made from dried Zoborodo also known Roselle, Sorrel and hibiscus plant flowers in some part of world. Before I proceed to Zobo drink preparation, let me mention some of the great health benefits of Zobo drink
.

Thirst
Zobo can be taken warm or cold. As cold drink, the infusion satiates thirst quite effectively. It is highly recommended better alternative to soda,  frizzy and artificially flavoured drinks.


High Blood Pressure
The antihypertensive properties of Zobo have been noted in a scholarly study.  Zoborodo flower is an antioxidant. It has properties that prevents the oxidation of low-density lipoproteins; a substance in blood that if increased beyond normal quantities may cause high blood pressure.


Weight Loss
Taking Zobo drink can aid weight loss. Our body produces an enzyme known as amylase which functions to break down starch molecules and complex sugar in food. When someone excessively consumes carbohydrate-rich food (full of sugar and starch) that person is most likely going to gain weight. According to pubmed.gov, hibiscus (Zoborodo) contains a substance that can hinder the production of amylase. An individual that regularly drink Zobo can thus prevent excess absorption of carbohydrates and consequently not gain too much weight.


Cough and Colds
As stated by the book "Healing Herbal Teas," fresh hibiscus flowers contain about 6.7 mg of ascorbic acid, a form of vitamin C, which is one of the more vital nutrients needed by the body. Together with this significantly beneficial element, Zoborodo plant flower (hibiscus or sorrel or Roselle) is acknowledged to have anti-inflammatory and mild anti-bacterial properties. Thus Zobo drink is can be used as a supplement to help treat coughs and colds. Due to its cooling effect, it is particularly effective in reducing the discomfort of fevers that may accompany such ailments.

Nutrition
Zoborodo contains 15-30% organic acids, including citric acid, maleic acid, and tartaric acid. It also contains acidic polysaccharides and flavonoid glycosides, Besides containing a significant amount of ascorbic acid, the flower is made of the following nutritional element, a 100g contains 49 calories, 12.3 g of carbohydrates with 2.3 occurring as dietary fibre, 1.9 g of protein, 14 mg of vitamin C, 300 mg of beta carotene, 57 mg of phosphorus, 2.9 mg of iron and 1.7 mg of calcium.

Florence’s Weigh Zobo Drink

This is a superbly hot and spicy drink, boiled in a pot with ginger, pineapple and local spice (kanampari), my African allspice and top with pineapple juice and lemon zest. I use this drink to ‘wash down’ my  meal or whenever I feel having  a drink or cool off.  I love spicy food and If you like really spicy food then add more pepper. 

Ginger & Kanampari

I just love the exotic flavour of this Zobo recipe; it's somewhat like chapman only a whole lot hot! The spices used are commonly used in Nigerian cuisine (you can substitute with whole dried cayenne pepper), but I warn you, it's spicy!!

Zoborodo has a sour taste so it can clash with sweeteners so I used akanwu (potash) to reduce the sourness. I also like to keep my Zobo drink as natural as possible hence I use only natural ingredients (sometimes brown sugar or 0cal sweetener when I can’t find very sweet fruit like pineapple or sugar cane) when preparing the drink. You may add artificial flavours and sweeteners such as pineapple flavour and sugar if you wish.


You'll Need

400g of dried Zoborodo/hibiscus flowers
4 litres of water
1 large very sweet pineapple (divided for juicing and boiling)
Zest of 2 lemons
½ cup African allspice (substitute with cayenne pepper)
1 tbspn kanampari (sorry don’t know the English name)
4 medium gingers, grated
Little akanwu (potash, optional), dissolved in a small bowl of water


Preparations

Lightly wash and rinse the zoborodo in cold water.

Wash the pineapple, cut in half. Cut part of the half with the skin on, juice the other half and set aside.

Put the lemon zest in a blender, add little water, and give it a little swirl and aside.

Add the water in a pot and bring to a boil. As soon as it starts boiling, add the rinsed flowers, ginger and chopped pineapple, African allspice (or cayenne pepper).

Cover and boil for 15 minutes and the potash towards the end.

Turn off the heat and allow it cool for 5 minutes then add the juiced pineapple and lemon zest.
 Using a large bowl, drain the mixture with tight sieve or clothe sieve (make sure flowers don’t go inside the bowl, and if possibly sieve 2- 3 times).

Pour the drained mixture into a pitcher or bottles. Add more water and flavour if desired. Taste to gauge the level of sweetness before adding sugar.
Stir and refrigerate. Best served chilled.