This sweet and easy strawberry simple syrup recipe is bursting with real strawberry flavor and is the perfect addition to cocktails, coffee, tea, and any other favorite drinks you have! It’s made with just 3 ingredients (1 of which is water) and can be made with fresh OR frozen strawberries.
Why You’ll Love this Strawberry Simple Syrup
This simple syrup is one of my favorite flavors to add to drinks, alongside my lavender vanilla simple syrup and brown sugar syrup. Here are a few reasons you’ll love it!
- Incredible Real Strawberry Flavor: no artificial flavors or extracts are used in this recipe. This recipe has a higher ratio of strawberries to water for a sweet syrup with an intense strawberry flavor!
- Use Frozen or Fresh Fruit: if it’s not strawberry season, no worries! You can use frozen berries or fresh berries to make this recipe.
- 15 Minute Prep & Cook Time: this syrup is super quick to whip up, with only a couple minutes of prep time.
Ingredients
You only need 3 simple ingredients for this homemade strawberry syrup! They are:
- Fresh Strawberries, or frozen
- White Cane Sugar or Brown Sugar
- Hot Water
Substitutions & Add Ins
To Make a Sugar Free Strawberry Syrup
While I haven’t tried this substitution in this particular recipe, I recommend subbing the white sugar or brown sugar in the fruit syrup for Swerve’s Granulated or Brown Sugar or another sugar substitute.
I’ve used Swerve’s products in other recipes, and it performs very similarly to real sugar. You could also try subbing maple syrup or another liquid sweetener for the sugar, however I haven’t tried this substitution and I can’t guarantee results.
Other Add Ins
- Lemon Juice or Lemon Peel: add a squeeze of lemon juice or grated lemon zest to help balance the sweetness. Only add this if you’d like a tarter flavor.
- Vanilla Extract: add 1 tsp of vanilla extract after the syrup simmers for a flavor similar to strawberries & cream.
- Basil: to make strawberry basil simple syrup, add in 1-2 tbsp of fresh basil leaves while simmering the syrup.
- Other Berries: swap in your favorite fruit like raspberries for a different flavor.
Helpful Equipment
- Fine Mesh Sieve
- Medium Saucepan
- Airtight Container or Mason Jar
Step-by-step Instructions
🍓 *Ingredient Quantities are in the Recipe Card Below!*
STEP 1: In a small saucepan or pot, add the diced strawberries, sugar, and hot water. Simmer over low heat for 5 to 10 minutes.
📌 TIP: Do not smash the strawberries! This will make them more difficult to strain and scoop out.
Simmering the Strawberry Syrup
STEP 2: Gently stir the mixture until the sugar dissolves, the syrup becomes red, and the strawberries look paler in color.
NOTE: At this point, the syrup will be slightly thicker in consistency, but still somewhat runny. It will continue to thicken as it cools at room temperature.
STEP 3: Scoop the strawberries out (see below for ways to use the leftover strawberries). Pour the syrup through a metal sieve into a sealable heat-proof jar or container. Cool at room temperature.
Using the Syrup
This syrup is delicious in all sorts of different drinks. I’ve added it to coffee, matcha, and mojitos before for the best, real strawberry flavor.
Add 1-2 tbsp of syrup to your favorite drinks. Adjust the amount of syrup based on how sweet you like your drinks to be.
You could also pour this syrup on your favorite breakfast treats or desserts. Below are a few ideas:
What to do With Leftover Strawberry Puree
The leftover strawberries can be blended with milk (to make strawberry milk), water (for strawberry ice) or other fruit to make smoothies to prevent waste.
🧊 Frozen Strawberry Ice Cubes: you can pour some of the strawberry milk (linked above) into ice cube trays to make fun strawberry-flavored ice for your cocktails or coffee! Place the trays in the freezer for 2-3 hours or until set.
How to Store the Strawberry Syrup
Transfer the strawberry syrup to a clean airtight container or mason jar with a lid.
📌 TIP: for the best results, make sure the container has been sterilized or cleaned very well prior to filling it. This will help the syrup last longer.
Let the syrup cool completely at room temperature. Once cooled, transfer the syrup to the fridge.
The syrup can be stored in the fridge for 1-2 weeks. If the syrup is placed in the fridge prior to cooling completely at room temperature, it may crystallize.
Pro Tips
Follow these simple tips for the best results!
- Don’t smash the strawberries while simmering them in the sugar and water: this will make them harder to strain out and will make the syrup cloudy.
- Let the syrup cool at room temperature before storing in the fridge: this will help prevent the syrup from crystallizing.
- Blend the remaining fruit pulp with milk or other fruit: to prevent waste, you can blend the leftover strawberry puree with milk (to make strawberry milk) or with other fruit to make smoothies.
FAQ
This strawberry syrup can be poured on desserts or breakfast foods like pancakes. However, because it’s a simple syrup (it uses equal parts water to sugar) it is thinner than pancake syrup. For a thicker syrup, double the sugar to 1 cup (2:1 ratio of sugar to water). This is the same ratio I use in my Brown Sugar Syrup for Boba.
Yes, strawberry syrup can be made from frozen strawberries. Let the berries thaw at room temperature prior to dicing them and simmering them.
This syrup can also be drizzled on your favorite desserts like ice cream, strawberry shortcakes, or milkshakes! You could even add it to poke cakes or between cake layers to keep them moist.
This fresh strawberry syrup can be added to cocktails like mojitos, to coffee, iced tea and matcha green tea, or it can be used to make Italian sodas. Add it to soda water for a sweet strawberry flavor perfect for the spring or summer. You could even add it to fresh squeezed lemon juice and water to make a sweet homemade strawberry lemonade!
More Delicious Strawberry Recipes:
Did you make this easy homemade strawberry syrup recipe for cocktails & coffee?
I’d love to know! Leave a star rating and comment below!
Strawberry Simple Syrup for Cocktails & Coffee
This sweet and easy strawberry simple syrup recipe is bursting with real strawberry flavor and is the perfect addition to cocktails, coffee, tea, and any other favorite drinks you have! It’s made with just 3 ingredients (1 of which is water) and can be made with fresh OR frozen strawberries.
Ingredients
- 1 lb (16oz) frozen or fresh strawberries, diced (about 2 ½ - 3 cups)
- ½ cup (100g) granulated white sugar or light brown sugar
- ½ cup (4 oz) hot water
Instructions
- If using frozen strawberries- let them thaw at room temperature prior to simmering them.
- In a small saucepan or pot, add the diced strawberries, sugar, and hot water. Simmer over low heat for 5 to 10 minutes. Do not smash the strawberries!
- Gently stir the mixture until the sugar dissolves, the syrup becomes red, and the strawberries look paler in color. At this point, the syrup should be slightly thicker in consistency, but will continue to thicken as it cools.
- Scoop the strawberries out or pour the syrup through a metal sieve into a sealable, heat-proof jar or container.
- Cool completely at room temperature, then store in the fridge for 1-2 weeks.
- TIP: you can blend the leftover, diced strawberries with milk to make strawberry milk or add them to smoothies!
Notes
This recipe can be doubled. Use a 1:1 ratio of sugar to water.
For a more intense strawberry flavor, use ¼ cup sugar and ¼ cup water per pound of strawberries. This is the method I used for my strawberry latte recipe and it yields a wonderful, vibrant strawberry flavor without needing to add extra sweetness to coffee! (You only need to add a few teaspoons of syrup to get a great strawberry flavor.)
Add Ins
Lemon Juice: add 2-3 tsp of lemon juice to taste for a hint of tartness
Lime Juice: same note as the lemon
Vanilla Extract: add 1 tsp of vanilla extract after the syrup simmers for a flavor similar to strawberries & cream
Basil: to make strawberry basil simple syrup, add in 1-2 tbsp of fresh basil leaves while simmering the syrup
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 24 Serving Size: 1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 15Total Fat: 0gSaturated Fat: 0gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 0gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 0mgCarbohydrates: 0gFiber: 0gSugar: 0gProtein: 0g
Nutritional info is an estimate.
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