Hot Water With Lemon Recipe

Hot water with lemon is a really simple, healthy and tasty hot drink that can be made as fast as a kettle can be boiled.

I find that half a lemon is about right but you can easily adjust this kind of recipe to taste.

I wrap the remaining half in cling film, ready for the next cup.

My personal routine is to make a cup of hot lemon first thing in the morning.

If you haven’t got a citrus squeezer then just squeeze the lemon to get out as much juice as possible.

If you decide you like this drink then it’s worth getting a citrus squeezer.

These range from simple to complicated.

Mine is a good, old fashioned, squeezer.

It’s not likely to win product of the year but it’s quick to use and quick to wash. If you want more choice, there’s lots of ideas here.

I can’t remember where I bought it – it’s that long ago – but it didn’t cost much and it does the job quickly and efficiently.

Of course, you also need to boil your kettle.

My habit is simple: top up the kettle first and let it come part way to the boil, then switch it off.

The reason for not boiling the water is that if it’s too hot it destroys some of the enzymes in the lemon. But if you want it scalding hot that’s your choice. At least you know!

While that’s happening, cut a fresh lemon in half or unwrap the leftover half from yesterday.

Squeeze it!

Then pour the lemon juice into a mug,

At first glance, there doesn’t seem to be much juice.

I’ve not measured it but there definitely doesn’t look to be enough to flavour a decent size mug.

It’s definitely less than I used to use to make up lemon or orange squash from a cordial.

Then add the hot water.

But there’s a surprising amount of taste in there.

Try it for yourself – my mugs are around 12 fluid ounces (about 350ml) and there’s plenty of taste.

It’s healthy – you know there are no added ingredients, there’s no sugar and if you filter your water (always a good idea) no impurities there.

And depending on the exact size of the lemon it’s about 8 or 9 calories – about the same as a cup of fruit tea.

There’s less than a gram of sugar and, again, you know it’s natural fruit sugar.

It’s also a good start to the day – drinking hot lemon water does all sorts of positive things to your body and really sets you up for the day.

By the way, don’t be tempted to heat the water in a microwave. Kettles are quick enough and they don’t do weird things to the composition of the water.