This yummy light red currant cordial is great when added to cold still or sparkling water. especially on a hot summers day. It is also amazing added to a spritzer style cocktail.

What are red currants?
Red currants come from a bush found in the gooseberry family. It is a really easy bush to grow that looks good all year round.
The currants look like small red peas sized fruit. Eaten raw they are quite tart, you will find that they are a lot more palitable when you add sugar to them. This makes them a great fruit for making syrups and jellies with.
If you find that you don’t have enough fruit after one harvest, do not worry the fruit freezes really well so it can be stored in the freezer until you have enough for your recipe.

What is a cordial
Depending on where you live in the world this may mean two different things. Being from the UK, I have always known a cordial as a non alcoholic concentrated sweet juice that you dilute with another drink. I guess the closest term in North America would be a syrup.
In the USA the word cordial is another term used for liqueur, it is an alcoholic drink that is a spirit with additional flavorings like sugar, fruits, herbs, and spices. It is also heavily sweetened with sugar.
So, I guess the commonality between the two is just that they are both a heavily sweetened drink.

Ingredients for the red currant cordial
Red Currants. You can either use store bought, freshly picked or frozen fruit, if you are able to find them. Seasonally the fruit is ripe and ready for harvest mid spring, early summer so this is the best time find the fruit. Which is great because we want this drink for summer.
Sugar. Any white sugar is fine. I use a granulated natural can sugar. I really like the flavour of this sugar.
Sea salt. Just a pinch to bring out the flavours.
Lemon. This is optional, I personally don’t add it I want all the flavour to be focused on the red currants but you can decide what you prefer.

Tools for making the red currant cordial
- Large heavy bottomed saucepan.
- Masher, optional
- Wooden spoon or spatula
- Measuring jug
- Scale or measuring cups
- Jelly bag and stand, This is the one I use, click here.
- Bowl. One that the jelly stand can sit on top of.
- Funnel. Like these ones
- Glass bottles. I love these swing top bottles, click here
How to make the red currant cordial
Begin with washing your glass bottles thoroughly. If you are going to be refrigerating and drinking it right away this is all you need to do. If you want to store it for longer then I would recommend sterilizing your bottles there are few ways to do this, here’s one easy method you could do, this site also has some great information too.

Wash your fruit thoroughly and add to the saucepan.
Pour the water over the top and add a pinch of sea salt.
Cook and strain fruit
Bring it up to the boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer. Cook down the fruit for around 45 minutes to an hour until the fruit is nice and soft. I like to mash the fruit as they cook so that they release all of their flavour.
Place the jelly bag and stand over a bowl make sure it is secure and steady.

Once the fruit has cooked down, very carefully pour the liquid into the jelly bag, ladling the hot liquid into the bag, it is a lot safer than pouring it in straight from the pot.
Leave the liquid to drip through the bag. Do not squeeze the bag. This may take anywhere from half and hour to an hour.
Once it has stopped dripping, measure the liquid into a jug it has probably reduced in volume so top up with more water until you have 4 cups of liquid.
Make syrup
Pour this back into the saucepan.
Add in your sugar and lemon juice if your using it.

Over a low heat stir the mixture until the sugar has completely melted. Heat for a further 5 minutes after it has dissolved.

Using a funnel on your bottle, pour in your syrup. Seal the bottle and leave to cool.
Decant and store
Once it is cool place the bottles in the fridge. They will store in the fridge for around a month.

Serve with cold still or sparkling water with a slice of lemon.
Alternatively add it in with some prosecco and gin for a summer cocktail.


Red Currant Cordial Syrup
Delicious sweet syrup to add to cold still or sparkling water. Perfect refreshing drink for the summer.
Can also be added to spritzer style cocktails
Ingredients
- 2 Cups (500ml) Red Currants
- 4 Cups (1 litre) Water, may need more for topping up juice.
- 4 Cups (550g) Granulated cane sugar
- 1 Tbsp Lemon juice, optional
- Pinch sea salt
Instructions
- Begin with washing your glass bottles thoroughly. If you are going to be refrigerating and drinking it right away this is all you need to do. If you want to store it for longer then I would recommend sterilizing your bottles. See above for my recommendations)
- Wash your fruit thoroughly and add to the saucepan.
- Pour the water over the top and add a pinch of sea salt.
- Bring it up to the boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer. Cook down the fruit for around 45 minutes to an hour until the fruit is nice and soft. I like to mash the fruit as they cook so that they release all of their flavour.
- Place the jelly bag and stand over a bowl make sure it is secure and steady.
- Once the fruit has cooked down, very carefully pour the liquid into the jelly bag, ladling the hot liquid into the bag, it is a lot safer than pouring it in straight from the pot.
- Leave the liquid to drip through the bag. Do not squeeze the bag. This may take anywhere from half and hour to an hour.
- Once it has stopped dripping, measure the liquid into a jug it has probably reduced in volume so top up with more water until you have 4 cups of liquid.
- Pour this back into the saucepan.
- Add in your sugar and lemon juice if your using it.
- Over a low heat stir the mixture until the sugar has completely melted. Heat for a further 5 minutes after it has dissolved.
- Using a funnel on your bottle, pour in your syrup. Seal the bottle and leave to cool.
Once it is cool place the bottles in the fridge. They will store in the fridge for around a month.
Serve with cold still or sparkling water with a slice of lemon.
Alternatively add it in with some prosecco and gin for a summer cocktail.
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