Fruit syrup
Lemon Syrup
Zest rubbed into sugar, steeped, then finished with fresh juice. Instant lemonade and a better Tom Collins.
- 33 min total
- 1½ cups360 ml
- Keeps 2 weeks
Quick answer
Lemon syrup is simple syrup flavored with lemon zest and finished with fresh lemon juice. Rub the zest of 3 lemons into 1 cup sugar, dissolve it in ¾ cup hot water, steep 20 minutes, strain, stir in ¼ cup lemon juice and refrigerate for up to 2 weeks.
Lemon flavor lives in two places: the fragrant oil in the zest and the sour punch of the juice. This syrup uses both. Rubbing the zest into the sugar first draws out the oil (the trick behind oleo saccharum), and the juice goes in at the end so heat never dulls it.
Keep a bottle in the fridge and you're one glass of water away from lemonade, or one shaker away from a Tom Collins.
Tasteszestytartlemon oil
The recipe
Lemon Syrup
Ingredients for 1½ cups360 ml
You’ll need: zester, citrus press, small saucepan, fine-mesh strainer, swing-top bottlezester, citrus press, small saucepan, fine-mesh strainer, swing-top bottle
Method
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Rub zest into sugar
Finely grate the lemon zest into a small saucepan, taking only the yellow layer. Add the sugar and rub the two together with your fingertips until the sugar is damp and fragrant. Let it sit for 10 minutes.
3 lemons1 cup200 g granulated sugar¼ cup60 ml fresh lemon juice
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Dissolve
Add the water and warm over medium-low heat, stirring, just until the sugar dissolves, 2–3 minutes. Don't boil.
¾ cup180 ml water
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Steep
Take the pan off the heat and let the zest steep for 20 minutes.
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Strain and add juice
Strain out the zest through a fine-mesh strainer, then stir in the fresh lemon juice.
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Bottle
Funnel into a clean bottle, label it and refrigerate.
Storage. Refrigerate sealed for up to 2 weeks. The fresh juice is what limits it, and the brightest flavor fades after the first week. Freeze extra in ice-cube trays for up to 3 months. A zest-only version (no juice) keeps for a month.
Per 1 tbsp (15 ml): about 32 kcal, 8.3 g sugar (estimate).
How to use it
Instant lemonade
1½ oz (45 ml) syrup, 1 oz (30 ml) lemon juice and 5 oz (150 ml) cold still or sparkling water over ice.
Tom Collins
2 oz (60 ml) gin, ¾ oz (22 ml) lemon juice and ¾ oz (22 ml) lemon syrup. Shake, strain over ice and top with 2 oz (60 ml) soda water.
Whiskey Sour
2 oz (60 ml) bourbon, ¾ oz (22 ml) lemon juice and ¾ oz (22 ml) lemon syrup, plus an egg white if you like. Shake hard and strain.
Lemon Drop
2 oz (60 ml) vodka, ½ oz (15 ml) orange liqueur, ¾ oz (22 ml) lemon juice and ½ oz (15 ml) lemon syrup. Shake and strain into a sugar-rimmed glass.
Iced or hot tea
1–2 tbsp (15–30 ml) per glass of black iced tea, or stirred into a mug of hot tea.
Cake soak
Brush 60–120 ml over a warm lemon loaf, pound cake or sponge layers.
Classic drinks with Lemon syrup
Gear for this recipe
Microplane Classic Zester/Grater
Lifts just the fragrant zest, not the bitter pith, for brighter citrus syrups. Also grates fresh ginger and nutmeg.
Best for Citrus and ginger syrups
Takeya Flash Chill Iced Tea Maker (2 qt)
Best for Iced tea by the pitcher
Breville Citrus Press Pro (800CPXL)
Best for Lemonade and citrus by the gallon
Glass Beverage Dispenser with Spigot (2 gal)
Best for Parties and showers
More gear for this recipe (4)
Zulay Kitchen 2-in-1 Metal Lemon & Lime Squeezer
Best for Fresh citrus for sours and lemonade
Otis Classic 16 oz Swing-Top Glass Bottles (6-pack)
Best for Storing and gifting any syrup
Cuisinart Fine Mesh Stainless Strainers (set of 3)
Best for Every infused or fruit syrup
Cuisinart Chef's Classic 1.5 qt Stainless Saucepan with Lid
Best for Every stovetop syrup
Tips for the best batch
- Use a microplane or vegetable peeler and take only the yellow layer. The white pith underneath is bitter.
- Zest the lemons before you juice them; it's nearly impossible the other way around.
- Meyer lemons make a softer, more floral syrup that's especially good in cocktails and on cakes.
- For cakes, brush the syrup over a lemon loaf or pound cake while it's still hot from the oven so it soaks in.
Variations
Zest-only lemon syrup
Skip the juice and use 240 ml water. Sweet and aromatic rather than tart, and it keeps for a month. Use it anywhere you'd use simple syrup with a lemon twist.
Lime syrup
Swap in 4 limes for the lemons. Use it for margaritas, mojitos and limeade.
Lemon-ginger
Add 30 g thinly sliced fresh ginger with the water. Great in iced tea and hot toddies.
Lemon-thyme
Steep 5 sprigs of fresh thyme with the zest. Excellent with gin and in lemonade.
Questions people ask
Can I use bottled lemon juice?
Fresh is much better: bottled juice tastes flat, and the zest, which carries most of the flavor, only comes from fresh lemons. In a pinch, use bottled juice for the final splash only.
How long does lemon simple syrup last?
About 2 weeks refrigerated with juice, or a month for the zest-only version. Freeze it in ice-cube trays for up to 3 months.
Why is my lemon syrup bitter?
White pith got in, or the peel sat too long in very hot syrup. Grate only the yellow zest, keep the heat low and strain after 20–30 minutes.
Can I use lemon syrup for a lemon drizzle cake?
Yes. Spoon or brush it over the cake while it's hot so it soaks in. For a crunchy top, stir 4 tablespoons granulated sugar into 2 tablespoons syrup and spoon that over instead.