Make Your Own Ginger Shots At Home (With A Blender!)

Mmmmmm, my obsession of the moment— homemade lemon, ginger, turmeric shots (in your blender!)  

First things first– what’s a wellness shot? Much to the dismay of #CollegeKate, taking these shots are a liiiiiiittle bit different than knocking back an ounce of cheap tequila at your college dive bar with Kid Cudi blaring in the background. *core memory unlocked*

Quite opposite from the cheap liquor we guzzled in our early 20’s, wellness shots are here to ENHANCE your health. Made with whole food ingredients, wellness shots offer a straight-forward, nutritious, quick drink that are jam-packed with anti-inflammatory, nourishing goodness. 

Wellness shots contain a lot of powerful antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals that can help elevate your day in one small gulp.

AKA, its benefits are very similar to green juice, but in a more concentrated, efficient form.

Basically, it’s a little drink with a lot of health bang for your buck! Ya ready???

why ginger shots specifically?

While there are a zillion types of wellness shots, my personal faaav type of wellness shots typically contain ginger, lemon, & turmeric. (More on the specific benefits of these ingredients lower in the blog post if you’re interested!)

These shots are great for general wellness (so amazing to have on an empty tummy in the morning!) , but I especially love it whenever I feel a lil cold and sickness sneakin’ up on me to help support my digestion, immune system, and reduce inflammation in my body (Am I against meds? No way! But I do try my very best to avoid unnecessary medicine & chemicals, so I always try to NURTURE my body back to health before I reach for any meds.) 

Ginger shots are my go-to when my body feels run down, I’m feeling inflamed, I want a digestion boost, orrrrr when I just want a healthy lil sumthin’ sumthin’ to sip on!

Here’s the problem: ginger shots are normally very overpriced at the grocery store or only available at fancy-schmancy juice shops, health co-ops, etc. Amazing as a treat-yo-self kind of scenario… but I wanted a ginger shot option that was more accessible (and affordable) on a day-to-day basis

…..So I started making my own! 

make it in a juicer…. OR a blender???

Something you need to know about me— I am a toooootal minimalist with kitchen gadgets. I HATE bulky equipment taking up space in counters, shelves, etc. so I’m very picky about what I buy and I don’t. One of the things I cannnnt bring myself to buy is a juicer. Would I love it? Sure. I just don’t think I’d use it enough to justify the purchase/space it would take up. 

But! I do have a vitamix blender— and booooy do I love it. Is it an investment? Yes. But It really is the MVP of blenders— it ACTUALLY purées and makes smoothies sooo well blended and smooth and perfectly combined.

So I just thought since it is soo good at perfectly mixing my smoothies— why not try to make a wellness shot with it???? So I got to experimenting! 

And, the end result, is an easy DIY ginger shot you can make at home with your fav blender :) 

AT-HOME GINGER SHOTS RECIPE

INGREDIENTS

• ¼ cup ginger root

• ⅓ cup juice from fresh lemons

• 2-3 tbsp coconut water (or just plain water. highly recommend coconut water as it has extra vitamins/minerals/electrolytes– but if you’re in a pinch, regular ol’ water is just fine!) 

• ½ tsp-1 tsp turmeric powder, depending on taste preference (you could also use fresh turmeric root for a more fresh/potent option!) 

• Pinch of black pepper

OPTIONAL INGREDIENTS (these aren’t needed at all, but just some options for a little extra kick & health benefit!) 

• If you like it sweeter: add a touch of honey or maple syrup to taste. 

• If you like big, bold flavors: a pinch of cayenne adds some zesty SPICE and helps support digestion. I really, really like the zing, but if you don’t like spicy, skip this! 

• Similar to above, adding 1-2 tbsp of apple cider vinegar adds some extra health bang for your buck (digestion and blood sugar regulation) and some ZING taste-wise— but it’s not for everyone! 

INSTRUCTIONS: 

• Peel the ginger as well as you can (doesn’t have to be perfect), then cut it up into chunks, measure about 1/4th cup total,  and add to blender.

• Squeeze the juice out from fresh lemons until you reach the desired amount, strain out any seeds, and add to blender

• Measure and add coconut water/water to the blender

• Add ½-1 tsp of turmeric powder to the blender (or a small chunk of peeled/chopped up turmeric root if you have it)

• Add a small pinch of cracked black pepper to the blender (this helps with bioavailability absorption of the turmeric. Don’t skip this!) 

• Throw it all in a blender until smooth (I hiiiighly recommend vitamix blender. One of the best purchases of my life. SO much better than any other blender i’ve ever had) 

• While you can have the drink straight up out of the blender, the chunks/fiber from the ginger root can be off-putting to some. Technically, a real wellness shot is strained of all the pulp and just a pure liquid. So, at this point, take the mixture and strain it any way you choose– through your french press (i will do this, but just make sure you wash it really well after so no taste lingers!), a nut milk bag (I also like this route! probz the best option), pouring it through a milk cloth (works great, but note that the turmeric will stain it so you may want a dedicated milk cloth for this recipe!), or another fine strainer option. It really doesn’t matter how you do it, but just find a way to strain out the pulp :) 

• Once you strain it, drink up! Knock it back like, well…. a shot :)

• With the leftovers, you can store it in a glass jar (or these super handy glass reusable shot bottles) in the fridge for about 5 days. 

• Pour a shot every morning, down it, and start your day with a little health boost! 

More info on the ingredients

GINGER: 

Mmmmm, the MOMMA of this wellness shot is the superfood ginger! Ginger is a phenommmm anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and helps us to combat oxidative stress in the body. Ginger has been shown in research to help support weight loss, reduce joint pain/inflammation,support health fasting blood glucose levels, speed up emptying of the stomach (help with digestion), and has been even shown to help manage pain period menstrual pain as effectively as NSAIDs! I know it may sound “too good to be true”, but ginger definitely deserves its status as a “superfood”. Supplementing with ginger can have many health benefits, and that’s why I LOVE this shot– you get a good amount of ginger in really easily! 

LEMON:

Lemons, lemons, lemons! Lemon are a great source of  natural electrolytes— there’s calcium, potassium, magnesium… Not to mention, lemons can help decrease inflammation, regulate pH, and boost immunity (one lemon has over 139% of your daily vitamin C).

COCONUT WATER: 

Coconut water is nature’s powerade, in my opinion (except without all the nasty chemicals and artificial colorings of these popular drinks). Coconut water is an all-natural beverage is low in sugar and calories and has optimum electrolytes for hydration and nourishment–  such as potassium, sodium and mag. It is a so helpful for proper hydration and abrobtion of all the vitamins and minerals in this magic shot. 

TURMERIC

As you know from my turmeric latte recipe, turmeric is a POWERHOUSE herb. This root is shown to have antioxidant effects, reduce both chronic and acute inflammation, do wonders for your digestion, annnnnd inhibit the growth of a variety of bacteria, pathogenic fungi, and parasites. Basically, this just adds to the anti-inflammatory and antioxidant goodness of this shot! 

BLACK PEPPER:

Last, BUT NOT LEAST, cracked black pepper (it tastes so good, and black pepper helps you fully absorb turmeric so you get the most health-goodie goodness bang for your buck!)

let me know if you try it!

mmmmmm, my DIY ginger shot recipe. if you are looking for a beautiful, anti-inflammatory, zestyyyyy drink, PLEASE make this! It is such a great way to start your day. 

There is something so beautiful & grounding about creating a nurturing drink for yourself from scratch– seeing all the ingredients, preparing them, being present to the gifts of nature. this is perfect for starting your days on a nourishing note, support your digestion, reduce inflammation, and support your immune system!

Let me know if you try it! I seriously love seeing when people make my recipes– it’s always so wild that my little kitchen experiments get to be shared with people all over the world! 

ready for more?