Homemade lychee syrup is very easy to make, and is perfect for flavoring many different types of drinks! You don’t need access to fresh lychees because you can easily do this with canned lychees!
Lychee syrup is easy and delicious, sweet, floral, and very fragrant! Perfect for sweetening all your summer drinks!
Lychees are one of my favorite fruits to eat, but unfortunately I don’t get to eat fresh lychees very often here in Ottawa. In Australia, I feasted on lychees that were sweet, juicy, floral, fruity and cool, all summer long. But here in Canada, lychees are ephemeral and very expensive. So canned litchi is what is widely available/accessible. But that’s a good thing, because you can make this amazing lychee syrup using canned lychees too!
Why I love this recipe
- It’s very easy to make.
- You can use canned lychees to make this recipe, which are easier to access than fresh lychees.
- Incredible flavor and can be used to flavor many different drinks! You can make lychee soda at home using this syrup too.
- Suitable for freezing, so you can make a large batch and freeze it for later.
What you can make with lychee syrup recipe
Lychee soda – This drink can be used as soda! Simply mix it with soda/sparkling water to make a delicious homemade lychee soda.
Bubble tea with lychee – Prepare some green tea or jasmine tea, and sweeten it with lychee syrup. Add some coconut milk and boba pearls and you’ve got your own homemade lychee and coconut boba tea!
Lychee cocktails – Replace simple syrup with this lychee syrup to make fun and delicious cocktails!
Lychee mocktails -Check out this easy lychee mocktail made with lychee syrup and non-alcoholic gin.
Panna cotta with lychee – Make coconut panna cotta and serve with canned lychees and drizzle lychee syrup over the top.
Lychee lemon juice Instead of sugar, add this syrup to your lemonade. This will add a wonderful, subtle fruity and floral flavor! Trust me, it tastes amazing!
Ingredients needed to prepare lychee syrup
Canned litchi -You will need two cans, but you can easily double this recipe as well.
sugar – This helps concentrate the syrup and flavor the lychee.
See the “Other flavors that go with lychee” section below for more ideas on what to add to your lychee syrup.
How to make lychee syrup
The first step is to prepare the ingredients.
I like to use one full can plus the liquid in the second can. This is so I can save the lychees in the second can to garnish drinks and eat of course. But you can definitely use both cans of lychees.
Then you can decide if you want to add any other flavors. I usually make a classic lychee simple syrup, but this time I wanted to add a little ginger. I’ve made ginger and lychee sangria on the blog before, and loved this flavor combination. So I wanted to add a little spice to my drink. But this lychee syrup is incredibly delicious without any additives, too.
Place all the lychees and syrup in a blender. Blend to process the lychee until completely blended. If you don’t have a blender, you can use an immersion blender as well. It’s okay if the lychees aren’t mixed well, because we’ll be straining everything out at the end.
Add the mixture mixed with sugar to a saucepan. Heat over medium heat until the syrup mixture boils. Reduce the heat and simmer until the mixture reduces in volume by about half. The time will vary depending on the size of the pot and the stove you are using. In my kitchen, it takes about an hour of simmering over medium heat. It is important not to let it “boil” over high heat, as you want the syrup to gently boil to extract and concentrate the flavour.
Once cooked, let it cool to room temperature. Then pass the mixture through a sieve, then a nut milk bag to remove all the pulp. If you need to, squeeze the pulp to extract all the liquid.
Store the syrup in a clean, dry container with a tight-fitting lid.
You can use the syrup at room temperature, but I like to keep it in the fridge, so it’s mostly used after it’s cooled.
Storage instructions
Pour the syrup into a clean, dry bowl. Make sure it’s an airtight container, whether it’s a jar, bottle, or just a storage container.
The syrup can be kept in the refrigerator for up to a week, but this also depends on how you handle it.
If the syrup is kept at room temperature for long periods between cooling periods, this will make it spoil faster.
When using the syrup, if it comes into contact with other items or foods, this may also reduce its shelf life.
You can also freeze this syrup for up to 4 or 5 months, then thaw it in the refrigerator before using.
Other flavors you can add to lychee syrup
Lychee has a delicate and delicate flavour. So you have to be careful about the flavors you add to your lychee syrup, without overpowering the lychee flavour.
ginger. The ginger will add a little warm spice to the drink. I added some ginger to the syrup here to add a little warmth to the drinks I make.
Lime. You can add a little lemon juice. This will increase the flavor of the lychee. But be careful not to add too much as it can definitely overpower the lychee flavour.
Strawberry or raspberry. These berries go well with lychees! But again, don’t let that overpower the lychee flavor.
mint. Add some mint to the drink and let it steep. The floral notes of lychee and the refreshing minty flavor of mint complement each other well.
tea. Tea is a no-brainer to pair with lychee! But you should avoid teas that contain strong tannins, such as black tea. I recommend,
- Green tea (not matcha)
- Oolong tea
- Jasmine tea (my favorite)
Other questions and tips about this recipe
You can use fresh lychees, but since fresh lychees tend to be more expensive than the canned version, I prefer to use canned lychees for this lychee drink.
However, if you prefer to use fresh lychees, here is the ratio I use to make the syrup.
For every 200g of fresh lychee (or fresh lychee puree), I use 100g of sugar and 100g of water. This is a ratio of 2:1:1.
However, cooking times will vary, so monitor your syrup to get the right consistency.
Since we make this syrup using canned lychees, it will already contain sugar. Therefore, it cannot be converted into sugar-free syrup.
If you are using fresh lychees or lychee puree, you can add an artificial sweetener. However, I’m not familiar with how to handle artificial sweeteners for making syrup, so unfortunately I can’t offer any further advice on this topic.
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Homemade lychee syrup recipe
fruit: Makes about 2 – 2¼ Two cups of syrup, depending on how long the syrup is boiled.
kitchen: East Asia, worldwide
Preparatory: 15 minutes
Inactive cooling time: 1 hour
Cook: 1 hour
Total time: 2 hours 15 minutes
Meals: Servings (2 tablespoons/30 ml)
Prevent the screen from turning dark
directions:
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Place the canned lychees and sugar in a blender. If you prefer, you can leave a few pieces of lychee in a separate bowl to use later as a garnish for your drinks.
2 cans of lychee
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Blend until the lychees are processed.
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Place the blended lychee mixture and sugar in a saucepan and heat over medium heat, stirring. Stir until the sugar dissolves and leave until it boils.
100 grams of white sugar
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Reduce the heat and let the mixture boil over low heat until its volume reduces to about 60% of its initial size. The initial volume for me was about 4 cups, and the syrup was simmered until it reached about 2.5 cups. This generally takes about 1 hour over medium heat on the stove.
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Once the syrup boils, let it cool to room temperature.
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Pass the mixture into a nut milk bag, squeezing the pulp to remove as much liquid as possible.
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Pour the drink into an airtight bottle or container, then put it in the refrigerator until needed.
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The syrup can be kept in the refrigerator for up to a week if proper food handling practices are followed. If you want to keep the syrup longer, store the syrup in the freezer for up to 4 – 5 months.
Tips and tricks
Add other flavors
You can add other flavors to this drink to make it more interesting. But be careful not to let it overpower the lychee flavor. Lychees are a more delicate flavor and can easily be overpowered by stronger flavors.
ginger – Add about 50 – 70 grams of ginger in the blender with the lychee to add some ginger flavor to the drink.
vanilla Add a tablespoon of vanilla extract to the syrup after cooking, and stir until the syrup is infused while it cools.
tea – Add one oolong tea bag to the lychee mixture. Bring to a boil and let the tea bag simmer in the brew for about 5 minutes before removing.
Lime – Add about 3-4 tablespoons of lemon juice to the mixture before boiling it over low heat. This will also help to brighten the flavor of the lychee.
Berries – Add some raspberries or whole strawberries to the mixture (do not mix them), while the syrup boils over low heat. This will infuse the drink with a berry flavour.
Nutrition information:
Submission: 30mlCalories: 21Kcal (1%)Carbohydrates: 6g (2%)protein: 0.001gfat: 0.02gSodium: 0.1mgPotassium: 0.3mgFiber: 0.001gsugar: 6g (7%)Vitamin C: 0.1mgCalcium: 0.1mgiron: 0.003mg
“This site provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. Nutrition data is collected primarily from the USDA Food Composition Database, whenever available, or from other online calculators.
2023-07-11 14:57:00
