Homemade Mint Syrup
Makes about 1.5 litres · Keeps several months
Ingredients
- 150 g fresh mint leaves
- 1 litre water
- 1 kg sugar
Method
- Bring the water to the boil.
- Add the mint leaves then remove immediately from the heat.
- Cover and leave to infuse for 24 hours.
- Strain carefully to remove all the leaves.
- Pour the infusion into a saucepan and add the sugar.
- Bring to the boil, stirring until the sugar has completely dissolved.
- Leave to simmer for 5 minutes.
- Pour immediately into clean bottles and seal.
Storage
- Several months in a cool, dry place away from light
- After opening: store in the fridge
Result: don't be surprised by the colour
Homemade mint syrup is not usually bright green. Depending on the variety of mint used, it often takes on a shade ranging from pale yellow to light brown, sometimes slightly greenish. The flavour is there, but the colour is very different from commercial syrups.
Why is commercial mint syrup green?
Most industrial syrups owe their colour to added colouring agents. Mint naturally releases only a small amount of pigment during infusion. The intense green associated with mint syrup is therefore more of a visual habit than a natural characteristic of the product. Some industrial recipes use the colouring E143 (Green S) to achieve this bright, stable colour.
Good to know
A discreet colour is often a sign that a syrup was made from nothing but mint, water and sugar, with no added colouring. The appearance of a homemade syrup can come as a surprise the first time, but it has no impact on its quality or flavour.
