This refreshing homemade citrus syrup drink is made with an orange or lemon citrus simple syrup combined with fizzy water or tonic. It’s the perfect mocktail to sip on a hot day or use the easy sugar syrup to elevate any cocktail!
After making candied orange peels for my chocolate orange cake, I wanted to experiment with other ways to use citrus peels and this homemade citrus syrup drink was the outcome!
It’s refreshing with bright flavors from the lemon or orange peels and has a light fizz from pop or tonic water. Serve the drink in a tall glass with lots of ice cubes and it’s a wonderful way to beat the heat on any warm summer day!
Why I Love This Recipe
- Refreshing: This citrus syrup drink has a fresh, bright flavor from orange or lemon peels, sweet taste from sugar and the carbonated pop adds delightful fizz!
- Versatile: This citrus simple syrup can be used in frozen lemonade, mocktails or cocktails like a limoncello cocktail. Toss a splash of it with fresh fruit for a simple dressing.
Ingredient Notes
- Citrus simple syrup: Lemon or orange zest, fresh lemon or orange juice and granulated sugar. You will need about 8-10 lemons or oranges for the juice.
- Citrus syrup drink: Simple syrup, ice cubes, fizzy water or tonic water and sliced lemons or oranges for garnish.
How to Make a Homemade Citrus Syrup Drink
Pour fresh citrus juice into a medium or large pot, add the sugar and citrus zest and bring to a boil on medium heat. Boil and stir often to avoid caramelizing the sugar.
Remove the pot from the heat and filter through a fine-mesh strainer. Place the mixture back in the pot and boil again.
Sterilize two bottles in boiling water. Remove the bottles and caps from the water and immediately pour in the still hot syrup.
Cool sugar syrup at room temperature until the cap seals then store away from direct sunlight for longer storage.
To make a citrus syrup drink, in a large sized pitcher add the water and syrup then stir well to combine. Add ice cubes and garnish with slices of lemon and or orange. Fill the glasses, and enjoy!
Using Easy Citrus Sugar Syrup
Once your citrus simple syrup is made you can use it not only in this citrus syrup drink but in these other ways as well:
- Use it as a citrus cocktail syrup with whisky sours, margaritas, gin or vodka drinks, old fashioneds or gimlets.
- Make a mocktail with the syrup and any fizzy pop or seltzer.
- Add some citrus syrup to a glass of sweet tea instead of using sugar.
- Drizzle some citrus syrup on fresh fruit or even Greek yogurt.
Citrus Syrup Tips and Variations
- Use any fresh citrus fruit: Grapefruit, orange, lemon, lime, blood oranges, cara cara oranges, all of these work!
- No cook method: While I prefer making a true simple syrup, you could try your hand at making oleo saccharum, a citrus oil syrup. Toss peels with sugar and stir occasionally for a few hours. Eventually a pool of liquid will become visible, remove peels and reserve the liquid.
- Type of sugar: Adjust sugar to desired level of sweetness. You can substitute brown sugar, honey, maple syrup or organic cane sugar if you like.
- Rich syrup: If you would like your fresh simple syrup to last longer without canning it, double the sugar in the recipe and it can last up to 6 months in the refrigerator. Adjust the amount used in drinks accordingly to accommodate the sweeter sugar syrup.
Storage
Once the sugar syrup is combined with the fizzy pop it’s best to drink immediately. You can store the citrus syrup for longer though!
- Store: Store the citrus simple syrup in an airtight container or jar in the refrigerator for up to one month.
- Freeze: Freeze the simple syrup in a freeze safe storage container for up to year. I like to use an ice cube tray so it’s easy to just pop out and use in drinks!
More Beverage Recipes
If you would like to make this Citrus syrup drink a little stronger, I’m sure a little vodka or gin probably wouldn’t hurt. Enjoy!
FOR THE CITRUS SYRUP
- 1-1½ tablespoons zest (lemon or orange) 2 lemons or oranges
- 1 cup lemon or orange juice (fresh squeezed) about 8-10 lemons or oranges
- ½-¾ cup granulated sugar
FOR THE DRINK
- 2-3 tablespoons syrup or more if you wish
- 4-6 ice cubes
- 4 cups fizzy water or tonic water
- 2-4 sliced lemon or orange
FOR THE CITRUS SYRUP
-
Pour the juice into a medium/ large pot, add the sugar and zest, bring to a boil on medium heat. Keep boiling for 3-4 minutes, stir often to avoid caramelizing the sugar. Remove the pot from the heat and filter through a fine-mesh strainer. Place the mixture back in the pot and boil again for 3 minutes.
-
Sterilize two 1-1½ cup bottles in boiling water for 20 minutes. Remove the bottles and caps from the water and immediately pour in the still hot syrup. Leave them to cool to room temperature until the cap seals. The lemon syrup will keep perfectly for 10-12 months in a cool room. Once open refrigerate. It will keep for up 2-3 weeks in the fridge or in the freezer for up to a year. Enjoy!
FOR THE DRINK
-
In a large sized pitcher add the water and syrup stir well to combine, then add ice cubes and slices of lemon and or orange. Fill 3-4 glasses, and enjoy!
Store: Store the citrus simple syrup in an airtight container or jar in the refrigerator for up to one month.
Freeze: Freeze the simple syrup in a freeze safe storage container for up to year. I like to use an ice cube tray so it’s easy to just pop out and use in drinks!
Calories: 630kcal | Carbohydrates: 172g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 2g | Saturated Fat: 0.2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0.03g | Sodium: 86mg | Potassium: 566mg | Fiber: 8g | Sugar: 146g | Vitamin A: 67IU | Vitamin C: 221mg | Calcium: 120mg | Iron: 2mg | Phosphorus: 55mg
Updated from May 16, 2016.
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