The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 7 letter word NOSTRUM
I've seen this crossword clue in The Times
N
O
S
T
R
U
M
More clues leading to the result NOSTRUM
- No serious patient ultimately wants peculiar quack medicine
- Solution that’s popular and in no way peculiar
- Remedy not containing sulphur and alcohol
- Preferred treatment answering question as to whether one should pluck?
- Cure? Doctor runs to source medicine.
- Normal, presumably, to inject sulphur to bring pet relief
- Remedy in no way unusual
- Remedy lack of alcohol, importing case of Sekt
- Ron must, having mixed favourite medicine
- No way to get booze as a medicine!
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "Preferred treatment" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case preferred treatment = nostrum.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.
What does NOSTRUM mean?
NOSTRUM noun- A medicine or remedy in conventional use which has not been proven to have any desirable medical effects.
- An ineffective but favorite remedy for a problem, usually involving political action.