Simple Hibiscus Syrup for Beautiful Floral Cocktails

A beautiful dark pink hibiscus syrup that infuses a fragrant floral flavor into cocktails or any drink you mix it in.  Its an easy simple syrup that’s perfect for creating pretty pink summertime cocktails for sipping with the girls.

This hibiscus syrup really does make the prettiest pink cocktails.   But that doesn’t mean that men won’t like them too.

Our men, Kevin and Mark, liked it just fine and tried to switch drinks with us when we let them try our hibiscus sangria!

What is simple syrup?

A simple syrup is just a mixture of sugar and water, usually in a thicker consistency than water, like maple syrup.   A simple syrup allows you to sweeten cocktails or other drinks, like lemonade for example, without the sugar sinking to the bottom of the glass or pitcher.

It’s also a great way to add flavor to cocktails!

How to make hibiscus syrup?

Hibiscus syrup is so easy to make! There are just a few easy steps.

1. add 1 cup of sugar to 2 cups of water.
2. add 3/4 cup of dried hibiscus flowers.
3. bring the mixture to a boil and then reduce the heat to a simmer.
4. simmer for about 10 mins or until the sugar has dissolved and the mixture has thickened slightly. You want it to just coat the back of a spoon. You don’t want it too thick.
5. strain the flowers out of the syrup and store your hibiscus simple syrup in an airtight container in the fridge.

And that’s it! The hibiscus simple syrup will keep in an airtight jar for a little while in the fridge so we make a bunch and keep it on hand.

What kind of sugar should you use for simple syrup?

You can really use any sugar you want.  White, brown, cane sugar…  it all works.

I haven’t tried to use any natural sweeteners like stevia or swerve.  My first thought is that you could use them, but they may not get to the syrup consistency, which is fine…

How long can simple syrup stay in the fridge?

Left too long simple syrup can get moldy in the fridge, so make only quantities that you’re likely to use within a reasonable time frame. Stored in the refrigerator most simple syrups should last at least 1 month, but lots of ours have lasted up to 6 months.

If you see mold or smell anything funny, chuck it out.  If it looks good and it smells good, its probably good to go.

Where can I get dried hibiscus flowers?

You can often find dried hibiscus flowers at a health food store and I would bet that if they didn’t have the flowers, they could order them in for you.   You can also always find them on Amazon.

Here is the link for dried hibiscus flowers on Amazon.

How to Use Hibiscus Simple Syrup

Here are a few ideas for you.  If you use your hibiscus syrup in some wonderful way, we would love for you to let us know in the comments below!

• hibiscus sangria – this is our recipe were linking to here, but you could add this syrup to any sangria recipe for a tropical floral drink
• hibiscus margarita – soooo good!
• hibiscus rum punch – works so great in a tropical rum punch.  We have a recipe coming soon for this!
• hibiscus mojito – this will be happening on our back decks this summer for sure!

If you’ve tried this hibiscus simple syrup recipe then don’t forget to rate the recipe and let us know how it turned out in the comments below.  We love hearing from you!

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