Do you want to stay energetic all day long this summer? Then electrolytes are what you should be keeping handy! They help replenish your body with the required nutrients and give you instant energy. And if you think you got to buy an electrolyte from the market, well, wait there. You can make one at your home too!
Wondering how to make a homemade electrolyte drink? Read on to know!
What Are Electrolytes?
The electrolytes present in the body are sodium, potassium, chlorine, and bicarbonate. These help keep our entire body in perfect condition. Of these electrolytes, sodium is the most important as it regulates your blood pressure, your nervous system (it is an essential part of neurotransmitters) and muscles. Fluctuating levels of sodium wreaks havoc on your system and at extreme levels it can even be fatal. Our system leaks electrolytes through excessive sweating or overworking of the body. So it is necessary to have energy drinks or electrolytes that refurbish these ions in your system.
The Basic Electrolyte:
The basic electrolytes are sodium and chlorine, and these two ions together form sodium chloride or common salt. Naturally, the most basic electrolyte is a solution of salt, sugar, and water.
If you have diarrhea or any such dehydrating condition, you can make a mixture of water and sugar and salt (in the 10:1:1 ratio). You can replace the sugar with artificial sweeteners or a sweet fruit puree.
How To Make Homemade Electrolyte Drink:
1. The Lime And Lemon Electrolyte:
- To make a lime and lemon electrolyte, take one-fourth cup each of lime juice and lemon juice.
- Add 2 cups of water, a generous pinch of salt and a teaspoon of honey or artificial sweetener (or more, depending on how tart your citrus fruits are).
- You can mix with a spoon, or whizz up in the blender with a couple of ice cubes. This is a perfectly cooling, electrolyte-replenishing drink that you can have handy in your fridge.
2. The Lime And Orange Electrolyte:
- If you want another flavor other than mere tartness, replace the lemon juice with twice the amount of orange juice (reduce the amount of water accordingly).
- You can also use sugar instead of honey or artificial sweetener.
3. Coconut Water:
Coconut water is an electrolyte by itself that contains a good amount of sugar and salt. Raw coconut water can be drunk alone (in fact, in tropical countries, this is considered a readily available source of electrolyte), or you can jazz it up a little to make a more delicious electrolyte.
- To 4 cups of coconut water, add a cup of strawberries.
- Blend this with a cup of water and a cup of ice.
- Add half a teaspoon of salt and some sugar, depending on how sweet your coconut water and strawberries are.
This drink is not only great to taste but also looks pretty. If you store it for later consumption, make sure you shake the container well before drinking as the strawberry puree tends to settle. Instead of strawberry, you can also use watermelon, which also makes a pretty drink and is the seasonal fruit of summer.
4. Cranberry And Maple Syrup:
This electrolyte is full of vitamin C and can keep your electrolyte levels balanced.
- To make this, mix 2 cups of cranberry juice (if you are buying it, make sure it is the unsweetened kind), three cups of water, half a teaspoon of salt and two tablespoons of maple syrup.
- If you want to spice up the drink, infuse a star anise in the drink for two hours.
5. Ginger And Lemon:
Ginger has a distinct taste and if you like it, this is a perfect electrolyte recipe for you.
- First you have to make the ginger water.
- To make this, boil a large root of ginger (chopped) in a liter of water and add sugar for taste.
- Once it has boiled for fifteen minutes, strain the liquid and cool.
- Now take two cups of the ginger water, a cup of water, lemon juice, half a teaspoon of salt and some sugar.
- Blend all with a few ice cubes and you have a perfectly cooling, delicious electrolyte!
6. Cherry And Lemon:
- To make this drink, buy the tart cherry juice that has been found to help in muscle recovery.
- To one cup of this juice, add one tablespoon of lemon, three cups of water and two tablespoons of honey.
- Add a pinch of salt in it and mix thoroughly.
- To make it quickly, mix everything in a water bottle, shake well and chill.
- When required, just take out of the fridge and drink.
7. Apple And Strawberry:
- To make this drink, you need apple juice. Try to buy the unsweetened, organic kind.
- To two cups of this apple juice, add a cup of strawberries, the juice of a lime and half a teaspoon of salt.
- Blend this with a cup of water.
- You can add sugar if your lime is very tart, but since strawberries and apple juice are quite sweet on their own, be careful with what you add.
This is not only a good electrolyte, but also a great party drink. If you are hosting an outdoor party on a hot summer day, keep this drink handy to prevent fatigue.
8. Lemon And Mint:
- To make this drink, make the mint water first.
- Bruise and crush a bunch of mint leaves in the mortar and pestle and add them to half a liter of water.
- Boil this for five minutes.
- Cool the mint water – do not strain out the mint leaves, they will continue to seep their flavor into the water.
- Now to flavor it, add lemon juice, sugar and salt according to taste.
- You can also make the drink with lime juice instead of lemon.
Now that you know how to make homemade electrolyte drink, let us know if you’ll give this a try. Summer is approaching, so keep an electrolyte handy at your home! And also tell us how you felt about this post! Share with us in the comments section below.
