Grenadine...
How to make it at home in three easy steps
Real grenadine is a vibrant syrup that lifts every cocktail it touches. Deep, rich and slightly tart it’s part simple syrup, part sours.
Once you’ve tasted a version made from the correct ingredients you’ll never go back to the corn syrup laden, strangely cherry flavoured, additive loaded mixer found in most bars and supermarkets.
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Homemade Grenadine
In this recipe, we’re going to show you the simplest, easiest way to make your own grenadine - and then we’ll show you how to layer in a few extra steps and ingredients that will switch it up into a full-on tastebud extravaganza.
Servings 0
Ingredients
- 2 cups Pomegranate Juice (approx. 500ml) - use 100% fresh, unsweetened, not from concentrate (unless you’ve no other choice)
- 2 cups White Granulated Sugar (approx. 500g)
- ½ tsp Freshly Squeezed Lemon Juice
- ½ tbsp Orange or Rose Flower Water
Method
- Pour your pomegranate juice into a saucepan or skillet over a medium heat and let it simmer until steam rises and a few bubbles come to the surface (about 5 mins).
- Add in your sugar and stir until it’s dissolved and the liquid is clear once more (about 5 mins). Continue to heat through - simmering not boiling - until you’ve reached a satisfying consistency - remember it’s a syrup, not molasses, so keep an eye on it and don’t go more than another 15 mins. Then leave the mixture to cool to room temperature (at which point it will start to thicken of its own accord).
- Stir in your lemon juice and orange flower water, pour the whole mix into a sterilised glass bottle or jar and store in the refrigerator.
Notes
- One of the key things to ensure is that your mixture is simmering not boiling. If it boils then you run the risk of it crystalizing.
- We’ve gone for a 1:1 ratio of sugar to juice, this keeps the balance of sweet and sour at a good level - making the final mixture predominantly a sweet syrup with just a touch of sour notes.
- However, if you want to bring out the pomegranate flavor a bit more, you can reduce the sugar but then you'll need to reduce the liquid down a bit further to compensate for the lack of thickness (i.e. more sugar in the mix = less work turning it into a syrup).
- Why use a skillet rather than a saucepan? A skillet is much wider than a saucepan, which helps the water to evaporate faster, minimising time spent reducing your mixture.
- It’s worth noting that the ingredients in this recipe can be doubled up if more is needed.
- Your storage container can be easily sterilized by popping it in your dishwasher on a standard cycle.
Shelf life
The sugars help preserve your mix, however by adding in lemon juice you’re introducing an element that will shorten it’s shelf life slightly. You should expect around 4 weeks in the fridge, depending on how well you sterilized your container. To extend this a bit further you can add in an ounce of 80 proof / 40% ABV vodka. Obviously you can’t then serve this to your kids, so maybe you give it a couple of weeks of non-alcoholic Hawaiian Punches, Afterglows and (dare I say it) Fruit Loops. Then add in your vodka and you’re all set for another 2-4 weeks of Zombies and Bahama Mamas. However, the reality is that as this super tasty syrup can be enjoyed by all the family, you’ll be getting through it in just a couple of weeks anyway!
Substitutes
Orange flower water isn’t necessarily a household ingredient, so if you’re struggling to get hold of it, or just don’t have it to hand, the skin of an orange will do nicely. Simply remove it with a fruit peeler and trim off any of the white pith underneath it with a knife. Then add to your mixture at the start of the process. You’ll then need to sieve it through a cheesecloth or muslin before decanting into your container. We’ve specified white granulated sugar, but to be honest you can use whatever type you want. Just bear in mind that the browner the sugar, the darker your final mixture will be, which may mean your grenadine starts to lose it's distinctive ruby glow. The flavor will also start to take on a more caramel tone - which is no bad thing, it’s all a matter of personal taste.
Optional Extras
If you’re keen to ensure you keep that classic grenadine coloring, or even amp it up a few notches, simply add a handful of dried hibiscus flowers into the mix. They add a light floral note whilst ensuring the beautiful magenta coloring of the syrup is maintained. And if you want to play with the flavor, feel free to add in a couple of sticks of cinnamon, or a handful of blackcurrants, blueberries or cherries. Just remember that if any solid ingredients are added you’ll need to strain the liquid through a muslin or cheesecloth before decanting.
Taking it to the next level
Okay, you may have tried the above recipe or you may just have a bit more time on your hands and want to make your syrup a touch more ‘legit’. Either way, if you're looking to take your grenadine to the next level, you're going to want to get up close and personal with a couple of pomegranates. Once you've got your hands on two of them, open them up, remove the seeds, blend them and then (you know the drill by now), strain through a muslin or cheesecloth. If you’ve no blender then cutting them in half and squeezing in a juicer will work, though you may want to press one side, flip it over and do the other side for good measure. Each pomegranate should yield around 1 cup / 230-250 ml of juice, which you’ll add to the mix instead of the shop bought juice, bringing far greater depth of flavor and brightness to the final syrup. One last tip - to intensify the pomegranate flavor even more, add in 2 oz/60 ml of Pomegranate Molasses at the start of the process - but make sure you remove around the same volume of sugar from the mix, otherwise it’ll be too sweet.
How to use your grenadine
So there we have it, you’ve made your own grenadine and now all you need to do is sit back and enjoy it. ‘But wait’, I here you say, ‘what should I use it in?’.
There are so many wonderful drink applications that it would be hard to do it justice with just a handful of cocktail recommendations. However, seeing as this is a tiki site, revelling in the glorious nature of all things mid-century Polynesian paradise, we would be remiss if we didn’t point you in the direction of a few delightful libations.
Here are a few of our favourites to get you started:
- Hawaiian Sunset
- Blood of the Kapu Tiki
- Doctor Funk
- Rum Runner
- Bahama Mama
Or for the non-alcoholic amongst you, why not treat yourself to:
- A virgin Hawaiian Punch
- A tropical Afterglow
- Or the (aforementioned) Fruit Loop.
Enjoy!
We put a whole lotta love, lime and rum into our work, so if you think your friends would find this article useful, we’d be thrilled if you could share it with them!
Thank you. Mahalo.
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