Homemade Cough Syrup Recipe

Homemade Cough Syrup Recipes via The Simple Homemaker

I am not a fan of over-the-counter cough syrups, and for good reason.  Nevertheless, there are times (like today) when the cacophony of hacks and sniffles demands a little extra attention, and children need relief from coughing so they can get their healing sleep.

Homemade Cough Syrup Recipes via The Simple Homemaker

Besides the usual rest, immune-builders, and liquids, homemade cough syrup can provide some relief.  Many of the old recipes contained whiskey.  I can see how that would knock the little ones out for a few hours.  This homemade cough syrup recipe which my great grandmother passed down to my mother is alcohol free.

Great Grandma’s Homemade Cough Syrup Recipe

Cough Syrup Ingredients

  • one cup honey, raw is best
  • one teaspoon ginger
  • juice of one lemon

Combine and simmer over very low heat for 15 minutes.  Do not overheat, as the raw honey will lose some of its remarkable nutritional and healing benefits.  This is also great for sore throats.  (If you don’t want to risk overheating, put the honey in after combining and heating the lemon juice and ginger.)

Thanks, Great Grandma!

I also found several homemade cough syrup recipes from bloggers around the web.  Here are my top four.

Top Four Homemade Cough Syrup Recipes

The following homemade cough remedies are organized in order of what is most readily available in my pantry.  Your pantry staples are probably slightly different than mine, so take a peek at each before deciding on one.

Keeper of the Home: Building on a simple base of raw honey and onion, Stephanie also offers options to enhance the homemade cough remedy with ingredients you may or may not have readily at hand.  The options make it suitable for most pantries.

Nourishing Joy: While not quite as simple as Great Grandma’s recipe, Kresha’s homemade cough syrup can easily and quickly be created from items I have readily on hand.  If you are an avid do-it-yourselfer in the kitchen, you’ll recognize all the ingredients.  Kresha also explains the health benefits of each component in her cough remedy. She also has a recipe for herbal cough crops.

Frugally Sustainable: Andrea’s homemade cough syrup uses fantastic ingredients, not all of which are in the average pantry.  She recommends planning ahead, preparing the herbal syrup in advance, and storing it in the refrigerator until the first signs of a cold sneak into your home.

Modern Alternative Mama: I only have three of the six ingredients in Kate’s elderberry and honey cough syrup recipe.  Nevertheless, by preparing ahead for the inevitability of the season, you could be stocked up and ready to concoct a batch of this powerhouse against colds.  Kate successfully uses this homemade cough remedy for her own family.

To further get through the season healthfully, check out the superb five-week immune-building recipe link-up sponsored by Erin at The Humbled Homemaker, Nikki at Christian Mommy Blogger, Mindy at The Purposed Heart, Anne at Quick and Easy, Cheap and Healthy, Leigh Ann at Intentional by Grace, and Rachel at Day2Day Joys.  The recipes we’ve tried are fantastic!

How do you fight colds at your house?

Healthy Snacks To Go

28 thoughts on “Homemade Cough Syrup Recipe”

  1. We use organic agave nectar (lower glycemic index than honey, but equally soothing) with a drop of lemon essential oil (boosts white blood cells) or thieves essential oil (awesome germ killer!). If you do need an over the counter one, I love Olba’s cough syrup! It is basically the same- honey and essential oils!

      1. I am a young living distributor. Very high quality oils. This would work great with raw honey! The agave is just much lower glycemic index for those who are watching that. If you are ever interested in the oils let me know!

    1. I wish my Great Grandma was still here to ask. I would say give a teaspoon at a time as needed. It won’t hurt him to have more. And I would guess it’s good for a couple weeks, but that is just a guess. That’s the thing with home remedies–no directions on the box. Hey, no box!

  7. If you make Frugakky Sustainable’s cough syrup, be careful with licorice root and echinacea, licorice root raises blood pressure and echinacea can cause allergic reactions.

  8. We pay high price for Zicam cough . . . where most, if not all, the ingredients are homeopathic. It works much better, than most of the cough syrups, available. But $10 a bottle, is the reason I’m searching for home remedies!

  9. Christy,

    Thanks again for featuring my cough syrup and for the list of great recipes. It’s always so interesting to see the different ways we use God’s creation in so many creative ways to deal with our maladies. 🙂

    I just wanted to let you know that I’ve added a recipe for herbal cough drops (basically, reverse-engineered Ricolas…), so if anyone’s interested, the recipe is at http://www.nourishingjoy.com/homemade-cough-drops/.

    Many blessings through this Christmas season!

  10. Wondering about “Grandma’s Cough Syrup” recipe after you simmer for 15 minutes do you serve warm or cool? Also, can this be stored for later use? Thanks for the helpful tips and advice 🙂

    1. Warm or cold. I use raw honey, so I don’t heat it much. I’d like to ask Great Grandma about that. Hmmm. I store it in the frig, just to be on the safe side, and probably use within a couple weeks. It’s easy to whip up. Thanks for your questions! 🙂

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