Central Valley Lemonade
Fresh lemon-and-mint lemonade served cold over ice.
Preparation: 15 min · Cooking: 3 min · Total: 35 min · 4 servings
Ingredients
- 150 ml fresh lemon juice
- 1000 ml drinking water
- 100 g granulated sugar
- 5 g fresh mint leaves
- 8 pc ice cubes made from drinking water
Instructions
Juice lemons and rinse mint
Wash the lemons before cutting. Squeeze and strain enough lemons to measure 150 ml fresh juice with no seeds. Rinse and drain 5 g fresh mint leaves.
Dissolve the sugar
Put 200 ml of the measured 1000 ml drinking water and 100 g granulated sugar in a small saucepan. Stir over low heat for about 3 minutes until the sugar dissolves; do not boil the syrup down.
Dissolve the sugar: 180 seconds
Cool the syrup
Take the pan off the heat and let the syrup cool for about 10 minutes until no longer warm. Keep the remaining 800 ml drinking water cold.
Cool the syrup: 600 seconds
Mix lemon and mint
Pour the 150 ml strained lemon juice and cooled syrup into a pitcher. Lightly bruise the 5 g drained mint leaves between clean fingers and add them; stir to combine.
Dilute with cold water
Add the remaining 800 ml cold drinking water to the pitcher and stir well. The lemonade should be evenly mixed, bright, and tart-sweet, with no undissolved sugar.
Evenly mixed and tart-sweet, with no undissolved sugar.
Serve over ice
Put two of the 8 clean ice cubes made from drinking water in each of four glasses. Stir the lemonade once more, pour evenly over the ice, and serve cold. Refrigerate any remainder promptly.
Tips
- Measure the lemon juice after straining so seeds and pulp do not reduce the required 150 ml.
Common mistakes
- Do not boil the syrup down; a thick syrup changes the measured dilution.
- Do not add warm syrup to the serving ice; it will melt the ice quickly.
Substitutions
- If mint is unavailable, omit the 5 g leaves; keep the lemon, water, sugar, and ice quantities unchanged.
Storage
Cover and refrigerate at 4°C or below; use within 24 hours. Discard if left unrefrigerated for more than 2 hours, or 1 hour above 32°C.
Reheating
Do not heat; serve this lemonade cold. Stir refrigerated leftovers before serving.
About this recipe
Chile’s Central Valley has warm, dry summers, and lemons are grown in central Chile. This chilled mint lemonade is a contemporary home drink for that setting.
Editorial approval does not establish independent kitchen testing. Check allergens and follow safe food handling.