Klojen, MC – The red andong plant, which has so far only been used as an ornamental plant, a border plant in rice fields and gardens, can actually be processed into a healthy drink. It was six students from the Faculty of Medicine, Brawijaya University, Malang who created this red andong plant into a healthy drink called secang andong.
To make secang andong drink, the dried and processed red leaf stems of the andong plant are mixed with several spices such as lemongrass, ginger, cardamom, rock sugar, cloves, cinnamon, cubeb and Javanese chili.
All of these ingredients are then mixed in one place or in a large pan that already contains water, then heated at high temperatures. After being heated for approximately two hours, then left for 15 minutes before the resulting drink is put into a bottle packaging.
Dody Pranowo, one of the creators of this secang andong drink, said that it is very easy to make this drink, because it is quite easy to get andong plants and some additional ingredients or concoctions. In fact, we can actually find these ingredients every day.
"All the ingredients come from local commodities that may have received less public attention to be utilized. This drink is very healthy and does not contain preservatives, because we can already know the ingredients ourselves," he added, Friday (29/1).
Furthermore, Dody said that this secang andong drink has many benefits, including relieving stomach pain, diarrhea, heartburn, bloody urine, excessive menstruation and so on. "The way to get the ingredients and process them is quite easy, so anyone can make this drink themselves at home for their family," he continued.
Dody hopes that this drink can later become one of the typical drinks for Malang City, and can penetrate the national and international markets. "Especially in the global market (MEA_ed), we are optimistic that this drink can enliven the ASEAN market. We will also continue to be creative in developing this drink, and even look for, and create other drink creations later," he concluded. (say/yon)
