These immunity-boosting ginger shots are the perfect start of a day. They are like a magical elixir and will keep you in tip-top shape all year long. The flavor is a little bit intense, especially if you are new to ginger shots, but so tasty!

Ginger shots are nothing new. They are sold everywhere these days, from regular grocery stores and health food stores to juice bars and even cafes. You can also purchase them online and have them shipped straight to your doorstep.

Other than ginger shots (or ginger lemon shots), they are also often labeled as wellness shots, ginger elixirs, or ginger tonics. The main ingredients are freshly squeezed ginger juice and lemon juice, but other ingredients, such as coconut water, honey, or cayenne pepper are quite frequent as well.

Here is a list of the most popular brands and the ingredients they use in their most popular ginger shots:

• JUS: ginger
• KOR: ginger juice, lemon juice, coconut water, cayenne pepper
• Well: ginger juice, lemon juice, honey
• Ginger Time: ginger juice, lemon juice, honey
• The Ginger People: ginger juice, lemon juice, cayenne pepper
• Tulua: lemon juice, ginger juice

All of these are amazing - cold-pressed, high-pressure processed, organic... the only downside is the price. You can easily pay over $3 for a 2 oz. shot.

Fortunately, there is nothing easier than to make your own ginger shots at home. Yea, that is definitely an exaggeration, but really, there isn't a reason to buy ginger shots in the store.

Tips for Making Ginger Shots

Ingredients

You don't really need a recipe to make ginger shots. If you're hard-core, you can even tip back pure ginger juice. But if you find ginger a little too spicy, you can add other ingredients that will tame the flavor of raw ginger. Here are some of the ingredients I use most often:

• Ginger: surprise surprise, the main ingredient in these shots is raw ginger, specifically its juice. The flavor is slightly peppery, citrusy, and sweet with a pungent and spicy aroma. Look for a young ginger root with a thin skin. The more tough and mature the ginger is, the spicier it is. If your ginger root is shriveled or blemished, peel it and cut off any bruises. If it’s fresh and blemish-free, there’s no need to peel it.. Just give the ginger a good rinse or a light scrub.
• Lemon: the bright taste of lemon smooths the edge of the spicy ginger. The lemon ginger combination is very popular. You have most likely encountered lemon ginger tea, lemon ginger water, lemon ginger lemonade, etc. Freshly squeezed lemon juice is best, but bottled lemon juice works in a pinch. 
• Coconut water (optional): not only does coconut water dilute the ginger lemon juice, but it also provides a little bit of natural sweetness. 
• Orange juice (optional): similar to coconut water, fruit juices add a little bit of sweetness. Other than orange juice I have made wellness shots also with freshly squeezed apple juice and grapefruit juice.
• Maple syrup (optional): a lot of popular brands use honey in their ginger shots to blunt the spicy taste of ginger. I try to avoid sweeteners to be honest, but if you're new to ginger shots, it's a great way to start. Any sweetener works here.

How to Make Ginger Shots

There are several ways to make ginger shots at home. The easiest way is to use a juicer, but if you don't own one, you can make them without a juicer, using either a box grater or a blender. 

How to Make Ginger Shots without a Juicer (with a box grater)

1. Grate the ginger. Using a box grater's smallest holes or a microplane zester, finely grate the ginger. 
2. Strain the ginger. Transfer the grated ginger into a nut milk bag or a cheesecloth and strain it into a container, squeezing the pulp to get as much of the liquid out as possible. The ginger pulp should be quite dry. 
3. Add lemon juice. Take the whole lemons and roll them against the kitchen counter (or any hard surface). This will help break the membranes in the flesh of the lemon, causing the lemon to spill out more juice. Squeeze the lemon juice into the container with the ginger juice.
4. Mix and enjoy.

How to Make Ginger Shots without a Juicer (with a blender)

1. Blend. Add the ginger and lemons into a high-speed blender. Blend on high until relatively smooth.
2. Strain. Transfer the content of the blender into a nut milk bag or a cheesecloth and strain it into a container, squeezing the pulp to get as much of the liquid out as possible.

How to Make Ginger Shots with a Juicer

1. Juice the ginger and lemons. Slice the ginger and lemons into small pieces, big enough to fit through the mouth of the juicer. Feed the ginger pieces into the juicer first and then add the lemon pieces. Produce that contains a lot of water, including lemons, will wash out the juicer and help extract more ginger juice. 

How to Store Ginger Lemon Shots

• Refrigerating: transfer the ginger shots into an airtight glass bottles (small glass vials are ideal) and refrigerate for up to 5 days.
• Freezing: transfer the ginger shots into an airtight glass bottles (small glass vials are ideal) and freeze for up to 3 months.

Note: store-bought wellness shots last longer because they are high-pressure processed (HPP). HPP is a cold pasteurization technique by which products, already sealed in its final package, are introduced into a vessel and subjected to a high level of isostatic pressure transmitted by water. No nutrients are lost during this process, but the shelf-life is significantly extended.

Ginger Shot Variations

I have already mentioned a few variations of ginger shots - ginger-lemon, ginger-lemon-coconut water, ginger-lemon-orange juice, ginger-lemon apple juice, ginger-lemon-maple syrup (or ginger-lemon-honey).

Other common additions are spices, the most popular being cayenne pepper (to improve digestion), turmeric (to boost the anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties), and black pepper (to increase the absorption of turmeric by up to 2,000%). 

More Immune-Boosting Drinks

If you’d like to try more immune-boosting and anti-inflammatory drinks, there are a lot of options:

• Lemon water: consuming lemon water has ample benefits from boosting the digestive and immune system to fighting off infections. A simple squeeze of lemon is packed with antioxidants including vitamin C and plant compounds called flavonoids, which have anti-inflammatory effects.
• Jamu juice: jamu is a traditional anti-inflammatory drink from Indonesia. It is very potent drink with a strong flavor so it might take some getting used to. The taste is earthy from turmeric, spicy from ginger, tart from lime, and sweet from honey.
• Celery juice: drinking any green juice is hydrating, alkalizing, and nutritious. Celery juice specifically is high in various plant compounds called phytonutrients, which reduce inflammation. It is also very hydrating, alkalizing, and rich in electrolytes. 
• Elderberry tea: tea might be one of the most medicinally-useful drinks when you’re feeling under the weather. Elderberries are known to reduce inflammation and oxidative stress. The tea has a naturally sweet-tart flavor and a fruity aroma.

If you try any of these recipes, please, leave a comment and rate the recipe below. It always means a lot when you do.