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Refreshing Sorrel Drink by Roxy Chow Down

Refreshing Jamaican Sorrel Drink

This simple, refreshing and flavourful Jamaican sorrel recipe, beautifully infused with a delicious kick of ginger and aromatic spices, is what you'll need to make your festivities merry and bright!
Cook Time 20 minutes
Steeping 1 day
Total Time 1 day 20 minutes
Course Drinks
Cuisine African, Caribbean, Jamaican
Servings 12 people

Equipment

  • 4 Litre Stainless Steel Pot
  • large Strainer
  • large container with lid

Ingredients
  

  • 100 g dried sorrel (or 4 cups)
  • 16 cups water
  • 4 inch ginger root chopped and crushed
  • ½ tbsp cloves
  • ½ tbsp pimento seeds
  • 1 orange peel optional
  • 2 cups cane sugar to taste
  • 1 tsp ginger powder optional
  • 1 cap Jamaican rum optional
  • ¼ cup red wine optional

Instructions
 

  • Peel, chop, wash and crush the ginger root.
  • Add dried sorrel, ginger root, cloves, pimento seeds and water to a large pot and let it boil for 40 minutes.
  • After boiling add the orange peel, cover the pot and allow the sorrel steep for 12 - 24 hrs. The longer the sorrel steeps the more flavourful and potent it becomes.
  • Place a large strainer over a large container and strain the liquid from the pot of sorrel.
  • Use a large wooden spoon or your hands to squeeze the excess liquid through the strainer before discarding the sorrel pulp.
  • Add 2 cups of cane sugar to sweeten.
  • If you're making sorrel for adults who enjoy the kick of alcohol, add some rum or red wine - 'to taste'. Start with a small quantity, taste the sorrel, and add more alcohol only as needed.
  • If you like your sorrel extra spicy follow this step:
    Taste the sorrel to test for the desired flavour. Add a bit more sugar, ginger powder, cloves and pimento as necessary. I love my sorrel extra spicy and prefer to add 1 - 2 tsp ginger powder, a few more cloves and pimento seeds after sweetening. Please know that it's totally up to your taste whether you add OR omit these additional ingredients. If you choose to add more spices, let the sorrel steep on the counter for another 6 - 8 hrs and then strain it for the final time.
  • When you have the desired sorrel flavour, pour the sorrel into a large jug, cover it and refrigerate. Your sorrel can last for weeks when refridgerated.
  • Serve your sorrel 'over ice', bless up and enjoy it!!
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