panela water It has been one of the most popular drinks in Colombia since ancient times. It is healthy because it is made with brown sugar, water and lemon, if desired with the latter additive. It is usually eaten cold as a soft drink, but it is also used hot with lemon as a tea to relieve flu symptoms. With brandy and cinnamon it is called canelazo and with milk it is called a tetero.
In Villeta, which is a municipality belonging to Cundinamarca in Colombia, a "National Panela Reign" is celebrated in the month of January.
History of panela water
Since colonial times, the panela water, among other things, to make coffee and it was also one of the ingredients of Santa Fe chocolate. Initially, it was used as a drink to refresh workers and later became so popular that it is sold in all coffee shops in the country, where all social classes are refreshed with it.
The custom of using panela water was enhanced when cinnamon began to be added to it and also brandy, rum or brandy to make the already famous canelazo. Also adding milk to produce the "tetero", in each region they have their own customs regarding cinnamon water.
With the passage of time, multiple uses of the panela water throughout the territory of Colombia. It is currently used in multiple recipes for excellent dishes, among which are: banana colada, mazamorra, pineapple chicha, coconut turrado, corn wraps.
Colombian panela water recipe
Plateau Refreshing drink
Cooking Colombian
Preparation time 30 min
Cooking time 0
Total time 30min
Servings 4
Ingredients
1 liter of previously boiled water
1 Panela cut into pieces
Lemon juice (optional)
Preparation of Colombian cinnamon water
To a liter of previously boiled water, add the panela cut into small pieces so that they dilute more easily. Then it is stirred frequently until the panela pieces have been completely diluted and lemon juice is added if desired.
Once made, the panela water it can be cooled to consume it as a refreshment or reserve it to use it in other preparations. It is recommended to pass the panela water through a strainer to remove any impurities contained in the panela.
Tips for making delicious panela water
Among the tips for you panela water It looks rich on you, the following stand out:
- It is convenient to strain the panela water after making it and before consuming it in case in the process of making panela in the sugar mills a wasp has fallen into the preparation. Wasps abound in sugar mills because they love cane juice.
- If you haven't tried it with lemon or orange, do it and see. Instead of consuming soft drinks with an amount of added sugar, in addition to other ingredients that can harm health. Panela water represents a very healthy alternative and fulfills the function of refreshing us very well.
- Choose the best panela that is not brackish, which usually happens with some that are available in the market. Frequently consuming panela water can benefit health because it contains vitamins and minerals that improve the body's defenses by strengthening the immune system.
Did you know…?
In this part we will tell you about the procedure used to make panelas, which is the main ingredient of the panela water. On the other hand, we will tell you what are the benefits of frequently consuming panela water.
Panela elaboration process
The panela is made with the juice of the sugar cane, its elaboration is still done in an artisan way in the trapiches. We will tell you below the procedure used for its corresponding preparation.
In the cane fields, the sugar cane is cut and taken to where it is milled. The juice of the cane is extracted, which is subjected to a cleaning process. The bagasse, which is the waste from the milling, is subjected to a drying process to later use it as the main fuel in the production of panelas.
The clean cane juice is placed in large pans where it is boiled over direct heat, generally using dried sugarcane bagasse, pieces of dry trees, or charcoal as fuel. When the cane juice boils in large pans, the impurities that still remain in the cane juice (cachaça) rise to the surface, which are then extracted.
The cane juice is dehydrated in the pans until it reaches the point where it is taken out for the containers where, when it cools, it solidifies and finally gives rise to panelas.
With the passage of time in the traditional sugar mills, the material of the pans used to dehydrate the cane juice has been modified and the conditions of the place where the cane bagasse is burned have improved, reducing the entry of air into the combustion zone and thus make better use of the thermal energy used in the cane juice dehydration process.
There are more modern trapiches that continue to follow the procedure followed in the oldest ones.
Benefits of panela water
Among the health benefits of those who regularly consume panela water are mentioned:
- They supply energy quickly thanks to their sucrose and fructose content present in panela.
- Provides vitamins A,B,C,D and E.
- Contains minerals such as zinc, iron, calcium, phosphorus and magnesium.
- Protects bones and teeth because panela is rich in calcium.
- It is used in treatments related to anemia due to its iron content.
- It is also used in treatments where it is necessary to strengthen the immune system due to the content of minerals and vitamins, which the panela provides.
- By reducing the use of refined sugar, the consumption of soft drinks, and consuming more water from brown sugar, blood glucose levels are lowered.
For all the benefits which the panela water, it represents a healthier alternative compared to the harmfulness of the use of refined sugar.
