I visited my friend yesterday and luckily she was preparing lunch when I popped in. She was preparing squash and pomegranate salad, which I must confess caught my fancy. I watched her cut and de-seed the pomegranates but the only thing that drew my attention was when she was about to discard the pomegranates peels (rinds).
You need to have seen my spontaneous reaction and how I immediately beckoned on her to HOLD ON.
Hold on girl or I will be forced to give you some hot 
She was like, Blessing,
why should I hang on?
And I said, you should hang on because you are not supposed to discard those pomegranates peels. Immediately, more questions hit me right away from her and there she went on and on with loads of questions ~ ~ ~
- Why don’t you want me to discard these peels?
- What are they for?
- I hope you are not here to practicalize your cooking skills?
At this point, I couldn’t hold my laughter any longer
I was like, babe wait, wait wait, one question at a time, okay..
I said to her, do you usually discard the peels each time you eat pomegranates and she said yes. Well, that’s got to stop cos you are missing a whole lot from this medicinal and nutritious fruit. I made her to understand that apart from using the pomegranates seeds for food preparations and juices such as the pomegranate juice, the peels can also be used for making tea.
Tell me more Blessing, she echoed ~ ~ ~
First of all, you are not supposed to discard the pomegranates peels. Pomegranates peels are used for making pomegranate peel tea, which is packed with so much nutrients and antioxidants. Making the pomegranate peel tea is pretty easy; just wash the peels and add in a kettle of boiling water or a jug of hot water.
Cover and allow to stand for at least 30 mins before drinking. I must confess that the tea is slightly bitter but you can add a bit of honey, maple syrup or sugar for sweetness. For this recipe, I used maple syrup and it tasted perfectly okay.
Here is a quick video on how to make the pomegranate peel tea!!!
Although I shared some few reasons with my friend but I am also using this opportunity to share with you some important things you definitely need to know about the pomegranate tea.
Pomegranate is botanically known as Punica granatum and the tea is simply made from its peels. Pomegranate peels have been proven to contain numerous nutrients, vitamins and anti-oxidants that are essential for the healthy functioning of the body.
Some Health Benefits of Pomegranate Peel Tea include:
Acts as a Detoxifier
Pomegranate peel tea is an excellent detoxifier due to the presence of antioxidants. Drinking pomegranate peel tea eliminates toxic substances from the body thereby keeping our body systems sound, healthy and capable of fighting diseases.
Boosts the Digestive System
Drinking the pomegranate peel tea is essential for destroying pathogenic cells in the gastrointestinal tracts thereby promoting healthy functioning of the digestive system. Drinking pomegranate tea helps to treat colitis, diarrhea, bile, salmonella and ulcers.
Relief from Sore Throat
Gargling the pomegranate peel tea or powdered pomegranate peels mixed with salt and hot water helps to give quick relief from sore throats.
Maintains Healthy Heart
Pomegranate peels are an excellent source of antioxidants that penetrate into the hot water for the body to utilize. The presence of antioxidants in the body is vital as they help to get rid of LDL cholesterol oxidation. It is worthy to note that excessive oxidization accumulation in the body is harmful to the cardiovascular system and can lead to heart diseases.
Good Dental Hygiene
Warm pomegranate peel tea with salt can be gargled by those suffering from toothache. Gargling the tea also helps to tackle bad breath and mouth odor.
Reduction of Ocular Diseases
Drinking the pomegranate peel tea can help to minimize the onset of eye problems.
Excellent Source of Vitamin C
Pomegranate rinds are an excellent source of Vitamin C therefore drinking the tea supplies our body with enough vitamin C that are essential for repairing damaged body cells, healing wounds, cuts and bruises as well as for maintaining strong teeth and bones
Treatment of Cough
Pomegranate peels is anti-microbial in nature thus the tea can be taken for fighting cold and cough.
REFERENCES
Altunkaya, A. (2014), Potential antioxidant activity of pomegranate peel and seed extracts and synergism with added phenolic antioxidants in a liposome system: a preliminary study, Irish Journal of Agricultural and Food Research 53: pp. 121–127.
Moghaddam, G., Sharifzadeh, M., Hassanzadeh, G., Khanavi, M. and Hajimahmoodi, M. (2013), Anti-Ulcerogenic Activity of the Pomegranate Peel (Punica granatum) Methanol Extract, Food and Nutrition Sciences, 4, pp. 43-47.
Venkata, C., Prakash, S. and Prakash, I. (2011), Bioactive Chemical Constituents from Pomegranate (Punica granatum) Juice, Seed andPeel-A Review, International Journal of Research in Chemistry and Environment Vol. 1 Issue 1, pp. 1-14.
