Once you start making your own lime cordial recipe, you’ll wonder how you ever got by without it. Not only does it bring next-level lime flavor to gimlets, you can use it to make all sorts of inventive cocktails and nonalcoholic drinks. Substitute homemade lime cordial for some of the simple syrup and fresh lime juice in your go-to margarita or daiquiri recipes, or add to a cocktail shaker with tequila and grapefruit juice, then pour over ice and top with soda water for a spin on a Paloma. Add a splash to club soda for an easy nonalcoholic sipper, or stir a spoonful into whole-milk Greek yogurt to instantly brighten your morning.
This homemade lime cordial recipe is essentially just sweetened lime juice or lime syrup. There’s no high-fructose corn syrup or artificial dyes, and you don’t need any special equipment to make it, just a citrus juicer and fine-mesh strainer. Rather than lime zest, which can cling to the bitter pith no matter how carefully you Microplane it, this recipe infuses fresh lime juice and agave nectar with makrut lime leaves, a Southeast Asian variety sold in many supermarkets or via digital grocers. Because there isn’t any citric acid or other stabilizers in the mix, you need to refrigerate it and use it within a week, but if your home bar is anything like ours, that’s hardly going to be a problem.
This recipe was adapted for style from ‘Speakeasy’ by Jason Kosmas and Dushan Zaric. Buy the full book on Amazon.
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What you’ll need
Squeeze Bottle
$9 At Amazon
Small Saucepan
$220 At Amazon
Fine-Mesh Strainer
$11 At Amazon
Slotted Spoon
$15 At Amazon
Recipe information
Total Time
40 minutes
Yield
Makes about 1 cup
Ingredients
Preparation
Combine 1 cup freshly squeezed lime juice (from about 8 limes), ½ cup plus 2 Tbsp. raw light agave nectar, and 10 makrut lime leaves, heavily bruised to release flavor, in a small saucepan over medium heat. Bring to a boil, then decrease the heat to low. Simmer until the mixture becomes syrupy enough to coat the back of a spoon, about 35 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, scoop out all the leaves and any scum that may have risen to the surface. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve and store in a food-safe container. Fill a labeled squeeze bottle for easiest use. Keep refrigerated.
Do ahead: Lime cordial will keep for 7 days refrigerated.
Editor’s note: This lime cordial recipe first appeared on Epicurious in January 2012.
