Marshmallow root

**cestlavie** · August 1st, 2020, 02:45 PM

Hi there!
I have a question regarding marshmallow root. I've heard it can give great slip but when you make a tea out of it, is it as the same liquid as any other tea or is it thicker? More mucilage like? Or do you have to treat it differently to get a thicker substance? I hope you can give me tips on how I can extract all the goodness from marshmallow root!

**TwilightMermaid** · August 1st, 2020, 04:35 PM

I have personally never used it, but I've watched many a video on youtube! It is significantly thicker than water and is mucilage-y. It is similar in thickness to flaxseed gel if you've ever used it. The most popular way I've seen it used was by boiling the whole root (I assume powder can be used too) in water until it turns thick and stretches like snot lol... best description I can think of

. Then it is strained, but I'm not sure if it is strained hot or cool.

**Jane99** · August 1st, 2020, 05:46 PM

Another method is to add warm water and let it sit for several hours and strain out.

**cestlavie** · August 2nd, 2020, 01:24 AM

Thank you for replying

The most videos I could find were about marshmallow root and slippery elm used together. I have the whole root but shredded and I tried to boil it but after 30 minutes it didn't form any mucilage. Do I have to boil it for a longer time?

**Jane99** · August 2nd, 2020, 07:48 AM

Try letting it cool with the root still in it and then strain. Think of how pudding thickens when it cools. If that doesn’t work, one recipe I saw was 4 tablespoons root to 2 cups water soaking overnight. I made it one time a few months ago using the cold soak method and it did produce the mucus, ending up quite thick and difficult to strain using my french press.

**cestlavie** · August 2nd, 2020, 09:14 AM

Thank you for the tips! I will try that next time

**Fethenwen** · August 12th, 2020, 05:02 AM

Yes, I second the cold soaking method. Works pretty decent to make out most of the mucilage.

**Soj** · August 14th, 2020, 10:02 PM

I haven't tried marshmallow root but I have made gel using fenugreek seed, and I have to cook it for a minimum of 6 to 8 hours (where "cooking" is actually leaving it in a coffee maker on the warm setting) to get it to gel up noticeably. Actually in my case less gel might be better because my hair is so stupidly fine and fenugreek rinse ends up being too heavy for my hair (even when diluted into my herbal wash).

Now that I think of it I will give fenugreek gel one more try, only I'll cook it for significantly less time so its less gel-y and might be more suitable for my uber fine hair. Up to now I've been making it separately from my hair wash (though its called for in the recipe) to get a good gel from it. I think less is better in my case, LOL!

It's not gel like commercial hair gel, its more the consistency of thin pancake syrup, the really cheap sort that nobody really likes, but only after hours and hours of cooking.

**captainjanuary** · August 21st, 2020, 01:58 AM

Originally Posted by cestlavie

Hi there!
I have a question regarding marshmallow root. I've heard it can give great slip but when you make a tea out of it, is it as the same liquid as any other tea or is it thicker? More mucilage like? Or do you have to treat it differently to get a thicker substance? I hope you can give me tips on how I can extract all the goodness from marshmallow root!

How does Marshmallow root work for you? Does it thicken your hair? I ask because I went down the road of buying zizyphus powder or sedr to thicken/condition my ends (in compliment to only doing henna on my roots now) and I found it so difficult to work with. Like, yeah, it goes on fine and seems to wash out fine, but the minuscule pieces of leaf, having mixed it from powder, are incredibly hard to get out of hair. I'm pretty sensitive about being dirty and it made me feel awful.

Do you use a whole piece of marshmallow root? I'm just thinking it wouldn't have tiny leaf bits in it...

Originally Posted by Soj

I haven't tried marshmallow root but I have made gel using fenugreek seed, and I have to cook it for a minimum of 6 to 8 hours (where "cooking" is actually leaving it in a coffee maker on the warm setting) to get it to gel up noticeably. Actually in my case less gel might be better because my hair is so stupidly fine and fenugreek rinse ends up being too heavy for my hair (even when diluted into my herbal wash).

Now that I think of it I will give fenugreek gel one more try, only I'll cook it for significantly less time so its less gel-y and might be more suitable for my uber fine hair. Up to now I've been making it separately from my hair wash (though its called for in the recipe) to get a good gel from it. I think less is better in my case, LOL!

It's not gel like commercial hair gel, its more the consistency of thin pancake syrup, the really cheap sort that nobody really likes, but only after hours and hours of cooking.

I had no idea fenugreek would become a gel. Though I use the powder in my henna mix for slip, so I should have known. It makes a difference.

**cestlavie** · August 21st, 2020, 11:48 AM

It hasn't made my hair thicker as far as I can see. But it gives great slip and moisture so it works great as a detangler. I use the shredded root and steep it like a tea but with cold water.