This homemade Orange Simple Syrup is perfect for adding a citrusy, sweet kick to cocktails, baked goods and so much more. You only need 3 ingredients and 5 minutes of hands on work to make a big batch that will last for weeks.
Traditional simple syrup recipe combines equal parts water and sugar in a saucepan until dissolved. It's a staple in our house for adding to cocktails, other drinks, and so much more, but we love finding ways to infuse different flavors into our syrup.
This orange simple syrup is perfectly sweet and citrusy, with a strong orange flavor from both orange slices and juice in place of water. It's delicious and versatile, with many uses beyond cocktails (think marinades, baked goods, salad dressing and more!).
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Why We Love This Recipe
- Quick and easy recipe: This recipe is as simple as boil, cool, and store. It's as easy as making regular simple syrup, but it's packed with extra delicious flavor from fresh oranges. It's way better than store bought and so versatile.
- Stores well: You can keep this orange simple syrup in a mason jar/sealed container in the refrigerator, or freeze it in an ice cube tray. This recipe yields 14 fluid ounces of syrup, so one batch will last you a few weeks (unless you're like us and use it in pretty much everything).
- Versatile: This orange simple syrup packs a bright and zesty punch of citrus to cocktails, baked goods, cold and hot drinks, marinades and more.
Ingredients
Here's what you'll need to make this orange simple syrup:
Ingredient Notes
- Sugar: Regular granulated white sugar is great in this recipe. It dissolves quickly and easily in water and creates a clear syrup. You can also use brown sugar or raw sugar, but they will create a darker syrup with a deeper flavor. If you use brown sugar, for example, the syrup will have a caramel-like flavor and can add extra depth and richness to cocktails or desserts.
- Orange juice: Freshly squeezed is best in this recipe since we're using it to replace water. You can use any variety of orange. Keep it simple with a navel orange, or change it up by using blood orange, tangerine, cara cara orange, clementine, or another orange of choice.
- Orange slices: The same goes for the orange juice – you can switch up the type of orange depending on your preferences. We like to add in whole slices in addition to the juice so you can extra flavor from the rind. It's easier to use a slice instead of zest, as zest is more difficult to strain out of the syrup.
Instructions
(1) Add sugar and orange juice to a small pot and heat to medium high. Bring to a gentle boil and let simmer for 2-3 minutes.
(2) Remove from heat and add 3 orange slices to the pot. Let the mixture sit for 20 minutes, then remove the orange slices.
Let cool completely, then use in a recipe or transfer to an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 4 weeks.
Uses for Orange Simple Syrup
This homemade orange simple syrup is super versatile and can be used in much more than cocktails! Here are a few of our favorite ways to use it:
- Cocktails: It can be used in place of simple syrup, agave or another liquid sweetener. It goes well with gin, vodka, tequila and whiskey! Try it in some of our favorite drinks that use simple syrup:
- Blood Orange Old Fashioned Cocktail
- Amaretto Stone Sour
- Blue Hawaiian Cocktail
- Grand Marnier Margarita
- Passion Fruit Daiquiri
- Add it to a mimosa with a splash of orange juice
- Mocktails/cold drinks: Add it to a non-alcoholic drink to add a splash of sweetness and citrusy flavor. It would be delicious in iced tea, lemonade, or a simple spritzer with sparkling water. You can also try it in these mocktail recipes:
- Enjoy in your morning coffee, whether in a latte, cold brew or hot black coffee. It would be extra delicious paired with chocolate!
- Stir it into yogurt, chia pudding, oatmeal or overnight oats as a sweetener.
- Swap with maple syrup for pancakes, waffles, or french toast.
- Desserts: Use it to add flavor to cakes, cupcakes and cheesecakes. It can also be used as a glaze for pound cakes/bundt cakes or drizzled over ice cream.
- Salad dressing: Orange simple syrup can be used to make a fruity salad dressing. Combine it with olive oil, balsamic vinegar, dijon mustard, salt and pepper for a delicious dressing that pairs well with spinach or arugula salads.
- Marinades: Add it to a marinade for pork, chicken, seafood, tofu and more. It would be delicious paired with ingredients like soy sauce, garlic, ginger and sesame oil.
Tips and FAQs
- Refrigerator storage: You can store this simple syrup in a mason jar or any other sealed container and stash it in the fridge, where it'll keep for up to 3-4 weeks. If you notice an off smell or mold anywhere in the container, discard. It's important to store it in an airtight container to extend the shelf life.
- Freezer storage: Freeze in an ice cube tray and defrost one or two cubes at a time when you need some simple syrup. When frozen, it should keep for 3-6 months, so you can enjoy it any time.
- Spice it up: feel free to add other ingredients to this orange simple syrup to change up the flavor profile. Some suggestions include 1 teaspoon vanilla extract or a small vanilla bean split in half, a few whole cloves, star anise, or a cinnamon stick. You can also swap out regular sugar with brown sugar, coconut sugar or even maple syrup.
- Don't boil for too long: If this boils for too long, it will thicken up a bit too much. After 4 or so minutes, be sure to remove from heat to cool.
- This simple syrup is great as a DIY gift! Store it in a pretty glass container, wrap a ribbon around the top with a label, and you've got an awesome host/hostess or holiday gift on your hands!
- You could even add a dehydrated orange slice to the ribbon to highlight the flavors.
- Pair it with a bottle of our homemade infused alcohol for an extra special gift.
More Simple Syrup Recipes to Enjoy
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📖 Recipe
Orange Simple Syrup
- Total Time: 10 minutes
- Yield: 14 ounces
- Diet: Vegan
Description
This homemade Orange Simple Syrup is perfect for adding a citrusy, sweet kick to cocktails, baked goods and so much more. You only need 3 ingredients and 5 minutes of hands on work to make a big batch that will last for weeks.
Ingredients
- 1 cup granulated white sugar
- 1 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
- 3 orange slices (with rind intact)
Instructions
- Add sugar and orange juice to a small pot and heat to medium high. Bring to a gentle boil and let simmer for 2-3 minutes.
- Remove from heat and add 3 orange slices to the pot. Let the mixture sit for 20 minutes, then remove the orange slices.
- Let cool completely, then use in a recipe or transfer to an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 4 weeks.
Notes
Sugar: Regular granulated white sugar is great in this recipe. It dissolves quickly and easily in water and creates a clear syrup. You can also use brown sugar or raw sugar, but they will create a darker syrup with a deeper flavor. If you use brown sugar, for example, the syrup will have a caramel-like flavor and can add extra depth and richness to cocktails or desserts.
Orange: Change up the flavor profile of this simple syrup by using blood orange, tangerine, cara cara orange, clementine, or another orange of choice. You can also add in other ingredients like vanilla bean, cinnamon sticks, star anise, cardamom, etc for extra flavor.
Refrigerator storage: You can store this simple syrup in a mason jar or any other sealed container and stash it in the fridge, where it'll keep for up to 3-4 weeks.
Freezer storage: Freeze in an ice cube tray and defrost one or two cubes at a time when you need some simple syrup. When frozen, it should keep for 3-6 months, so you can enjoy it any time.
Nutrition information provided is an estimate. It may vary based on cooking method and specific ingredients used.
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 5 minutes
- Category: Cocktails
- Method: Stovetop
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 tbsp
- Calories: 32
- Sugar: 7.9 g
- Sodium: 0.2 mg
- Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 8.1 g
- Fiber: 0 g
- Protein: 0.1 g
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