Hibiscus Syrup substitute

Best substitute

Dried hibiscus or hibiscus tea steeped into simple syrup

Use ¼ cup dried hibiscus, or 4 tea bags, for every 1 cup of hot 1:1 simple syrup, steeped 15 to 20 minutes then strained

Best for hibiscus margaritas

Close match

Not a substitute, the recipe. Worth listing first because most kitchens have a red herbal tea blend sitting in a cupboard and do not realise it is predominantly hibiscus. Red zinger, wild berry, rosehip and most Caribbean sorrel blends all work.

Other hibiscus syrup substitutes

Ranked, with the exact amount to use

2Cranberry syrup made from unsweetened cranberry juice
Close match
Equal volumes of unsweetened cranberry juice and sugar, warmed to dissolve, then use 1:1
The closest flavour match available in an ordinary supermarket.
What changes
Cranberry and hibiscus share the same kind of sharp fruit acidity, so a hibiscus margarita made with cranberry syrup tastes right. The colour lands a shade duller and more purple-red than magenta.
Best for
margaritas and palomas, spritzes, mocktails, sorbets
It must be the unsweetened juice, not cranberry juice cocktail, which is already about as sweet as syrup and will make a cloying result. If sweetened juice is all you have, use half the sugar.
3Grenadine
Different taste
Use the same amount then pull back other sweeteners slightly
Sweet, red and pomegranate-flavoured.
What changes
It covers the colour and the fruit direction but is markedly sweeter and much less sour than hibiscus syrup, so the drink loses its tartness and reads rounder and more candied. The colour is crimson rather than magenta.
Best for
cocktails, punches, sodas and mocktails, anywhere colour matters most
Add a squeeze of lime or lemon per drink to bring the acidity back. Real pomegranate grenadine is far better here than the artificially flavoured kind, which tastes of cherry sweets and will make the drink read as a Shirley Temple.
4Pomegranate syrup made from pomegranate juice
Close match
Equal volumes pomegranate juice and sugar, warmed to dissolve, then use 1:1
Tart, deep red and slightly tannic, which is genuinely close to hibiscus in structure.
What changes
It has a fuller, more grape-like body and a drying tannic finish that hibiscus shares, so it feels similar in the mouth as well as tasting similar.
Best for
cocktails, Middle Eastern desserts, glazes for lamb and duck, spritzes
Darker and less electric than hibiscus, more garnet than magenta. If you have pomegranate molasses instead of juice, use a tablespoon of it plus simple syrup to the required volume, since molasses is intensely concentrated and sour.
5Rose syrup or rosewater plus simple syrup
Different taste
Use the same amount plus 1 teaspoon lemon or lime juice per ounce of syrup
This matches what people expect hibiscus to be rather than what it is: pink, floral and perfumed.
What changes
It gives you colour and a floral aroma but no acidity at all, which is why the added citrus is not optional.
Best for
mocktails, lemonades, desserts and icings, when the visual is the priority
If you are using rosewater rather than rose syrup, about a quarter teaspoon per ounce of simple syrup is plenty. Rosewater is powerful and going past that tips the drink from floral into soap very quickly.
6Sumac plus simple syrup
Close match
1 teaspoon ground sumac steeped in ½ cup warm simple syrup for 10 minutes, strained, then used 1:1
Sumac is the closest spice-rack match to hibiscus's flavour, sharply sour and fruity, and it is used the same way across the eastern Mediterranean.
What changes
It gives you a dusty rose-brown syrup rather than a bright one, so this is a flavour-first, colour-last option.
Best for
savoury dressings and glazes, marinades, drinks where colour does not matter
The honest limitation is appearance. If the whole point of the recipe was a shocking magenta drink, sumac will not deliver it and nothing except hibiscus really will. Expect a muddier pink at best.

What is Hibiscus Syrup?

Hibiscus Syrup is Hibiscus syrup is sugar syrup steeped with dried hibiscus, the same flor de jamaica used for agua de jamaica, giving a deep magenta syrup that tastes tart and cranberry-like rather than floral.

Cooking tips

Steep, do not boil, and do not go past twenty minutes. Hibiscus releases tannins the longer it sits in hot liquid, and an over-steeped syrup tastes drying and slightly bitter in a way you cannot sweeten out.
Add the sugar after steeping rather than before. That way you can taste the strength of the hibiscus infusion and adjust it before you commit, instead of guessing.
Hibiscus stains almost everything it touches, including plastic containers, wooden spoons, worktops and clothes. Steep in glass or stainless steel, and rinse anything porous straight away.
It is genuinely acidic, around pH 2.5 to 3, so it will curdle milk and cream if you pour it in fast. For a hibiscus latte or a creamy mocktail, add the syrup to the glass first and pour the dairy in slowly, or use a plant milk with a stabiliser, which curdles less readily.
The colour fades before the flavour does. Expect two to three weeks in the fridge, and if you want a batch to stay vivid, keep it in a dark bottle away from light. It will still taste fine after the colour has dulled.

Frequently asked questions

What does hibiscus syrup taste like?

Tart and fruity, closest to cranberry, with a slightly drying tannic finish. It is not floral, which surprises most people, and the flower on the label is misleading. If you were expecting something perfumed like rose or elderflower, hibiscus will taste more sour than you anticipated.

Can I use hibiscus tea bags instead of dried flowers?

Yes, and it is often the easiest route. Most red herbal tea blends sold as berry, red zinger, rosehip or sorrel are majority hibiscus, so four or five bags steeped in a cup of hot simple syrup makes a perfectly good hibiscus syrup. Pure hibiscus or karkade tea is best of all if your shop sells it.

Can I leave it out?

You will lose both the colour and the tartness, and if the syrup was also the drink's only sweetener you will be left with something harsh. If you must, use plain simple syrup for the sweetness and add an extra squeeze of lime or a splash of cranberry juice for the missing acidity, and accept that the drink will not be red.

Will anything give me the same colour?

Nothing gives that exact electric magenta except hibiscus itself. Pomegranate and cranberry get you a deeper garnet, grenadine a crimson, beet juice a dark earthy red that also tastes of beet. Expect a softer pink from any substitute, and consider whether the recipe can carry it.

Is flor de jamaica the same as hibiscus?

Yes. Flor de jamaica in Mexico, karkade or karkadeh in Egypt and sorrel in the Caribbean all refer to the dried red calyces of the roselle plant, which is what hibiscus tea and hibiscus syrup are made from. Any of those packets will work identically.

Can I use hibiscus syrup in canned jams or jellies?

Not as a substitution in a tested recipe. Hibiscus is strongly acidic, and swapping it in or out of a canning recipe changes the pH and therefore the safety margin, not just the flavour. Follow tested preserving recipes exactly as written, and consult the National Center for Home Food Preservation for anything you plan to can.

Related substitutes

More sweeteners substitutes

Hibiscus Syrup substitute

Other hibiscus syrup substitutes

2Cranberry syrup made from unsweetened cranberry juice

3Grenadine

4Pomegranate syrup made from pomegranate juice

5Rose syrup or rosewater plus simple syrup

6Sumac plus simple syrup