Lime Cordial substitute

Best substitute

Fresh lime juice plus simple syrup

Use the same amount total, half fresh lime juice and half simple syrup as the lime cordial you are replacing

Best for gimlets and other cocktails

Different taste

The classic bartender's substitution and the reason most modern gimlet recipes no longer call for cordial at all. It supplies the same acid and the same sugar, just in two bottles instead of one.

Other lime cordial substitutes

Ranked, with the exact amount to use

2Homemade lime cordial
Close match
Use the same amount for the cordial called for
Warm equal weights of fresh lime juice and caster sugar with the pared zest of one or two limes until the sugar has fully dissolved, then cool, strain and bottle.
What changes
Fifteen minutes of work and it is a genuine cordial rather than an imitation.
Best for
gimlets and cocktails, cordial and soda, sorbets and granitas, glazes
Brighter and more aromatic than the commercial product because the zest oils have not been cooked to death, so drinks made with it taste more clearly of lime. It is not pasteurised, so keep it in the fridge in a clean bottle and use it within two to three weeks. Do not attempt to make it shelf stable at home without a tested recipe.
3Frozen limeade concentrate, undiluted
Close match
Use the same amount then a squeeze of fresh lime to taste
Thawed limeade concentrate is essentially the same thing as cordial: sweetened lime juice with the water removed.
What changes
It stands in almost exactly.
Best for
pitcher drinks and punches, cocktails, marinades, sorbets
Usually a little sweeter and thinner in flavour than cordial, with less of the bitter peel note, so add half a teaspoon of fresh lime juice per ounce to sharpen it. Do not add the water the can instructs you to add, since the recipe wants the concentrate itself.
4Bottled lime juice plus sugar
Close match
Equal parts bottled lime juice and sugar by volume, stirred until dissolved
A pantry-only version, and closer to the character of cordial than fresh lime is, because bottled juice already tastes cooked and preserved in the same way.
What changes
Best for
gimlets, long drinks with soda, marinades, punches
Flatter and slightly musty compared with fresh, which is exactly why it mimics the bottle so well in a gimlet and why it is disappointing in something delicate. Stir until no grit remains at the bottom, or warm it briefly, since undissolved sugar will simply sit in the glass.
5Lemon cordial or lemonade concentrate
Different taste
Use the same amount
When the recipe needs a sweetened citrus syrup and lime is not available, the lemon versions do the same structural job of acid plus sugar in one liquid.
What changes
Best for
punches and pitcher drinks, sodas, cakes and drizzles, marinades
Clearly lemon rather than lime, so a gimlet made with it becomes a different, slightly sweeter drink, and any dish where lime is the identity will taste wrong. Adding the grated zest of half a lime, or a teaspoon of fresh lime juice per ounce, tilts it back towards lime.
6Falernum or a spiced lime syrup
Different taste
Use the same amount and taste before adding anything else sweet
Falernum is a Caribbean lime syrup flavoured with clove, ginger and almond, so it delivers the sweetened lime base with extra spice on top.
What changes
Best for
tiki and rum cocktails, punches, sodas, fruit salads
The clove and almond are unmistakable, so it turns a clean gimlet into something spiced and tropical, which is a fine drink but not the same drink. Some falernums are lightly alcoholic, so check the bottle if that matters.
7Fresh lime juice on its own (the swap that usually disappoints)
Different taste
Use Not 1:1; use 1:1 only if you also add half a teaspoon of sugar for every ounce of lime cordial
Worth listing because it is the substitution most people reach for first, and the one that makes drinks taste harsh and thin.
What changes
Best for
marinades, dressings, savoury dishes
Cordial is roughly half sugar, so replacing it with plain juice removes all of that sweetness and leaves a sour, unbalanced drink. In a savoury marinade the sugar matters less and plain lime juice is fine. In any drink, add sugar or syrup: half a teaspoon of sugar per ounce of juice is the minimum.

What is Lime Cordial?

Lime Cordial is Lime cordial, best known as Rose's lime juice, is a sweetened shelf-stable lime syrup made from lime juice concentrate and sugar, with a cooked, slightly bitter peel flavour quite unlike fresh lime.

Cooking tips

Lime cordial is a concentrate meant to be diluted for drinking, but when a recipe lists it as an ingredient it means the neat syrup straight from the bottle. Do not add water first.
It is roughly half sugar by weight, so if you improvise a substitute from plain juice you must add sugar, and if you substitute something already sweet you should taste before adding any of the recipe's remaining sugar.
The classic gimlet is 2 parts gin to 1 part lime cordial, stirred and served very cold. If you switch to fresh lime juice and syrup, use 2 parts gin, half a part lime juice and half a part syrup and shake rather than stir, because fresh juice needs the aeration.
Cordial's distinctive slightly bitter, cooked-peel flavour comes from the concentrated peel oils. To mimic it in a homemade version, steep a couple of wide strips of lime zest in the warm syrup for ten minutes and then remove them.
Once opened, keep the bottle in the fridge. It will not spoil quickly because of the sugar, but the lime flavour fades within a few months and a very old bottle tastes mostly of sweet nothing.

Frequently asked questions

Is Rose's lime juice the same as lime juice?

No, and this is the single most common mistake with this ingredient. Rose's is lime cordial: sweetened lime juice concentrate, roughly half sugar. Using it where a recipe wants fresh lime juice makes the dish sweet, and using fresh lime juice where a recipe wants Rose's makes the drink sour and unbalanced. Convert by halves: 1 ounce of cordial is about half an ounce of lime juice plus half an ounce of simple syrup.

Can I use fresh lime juice 1:1 for lime cordial?

Only if you add sugar. Use the same volume of fresh lime juice but stir in about half a teaspoon of sugar or half an ounce of simple syrup per ounce, and the balance comes back. Without the sugar, a gimlet or a cordial-and-soda tastes thin and aggressively sour.

Can I just leave lime cordial out?

In a marinade or a savoury sauce where it is one of several seasonings, yes, and a squeeze of lime plus a small pinch of sugar covers it. In a gimlet, a lime soda or a Vietnamese limeade it is the entire flavour and the sweetness of the drink, so leaving it out gives you cold gin or plain water rather than a lighter version of the drink.

Is lime cordial alcoholic?

No. In Britain, Australia and much of the Commonwealth, cordial means a sweet non-alcoholic fruit syrup for diluting, which is what lime cordial is. Confusingly, in American usage cordial usually means a liqueur, so a recipe from an American cocktail book that asks for lime cordial still means the non-alcoholic syrup, and a bottle labelled cordial in a US liquor store may not be.

How do I make lime cordial at home?

Warm equal weights of fresh lime juice and sugar together with a few pared strips of lime zest, stirring only until the sugar dissolves, then cool and strain into a clean bottle. It is better than the commercial version and takes about fifteen minutes, but it is not preserved, so keep it refrigerated and use it within two or three weeks.

Related substitutes

More beverages substitutes

Lime Cordial substitute

Other lime cordial substitutes

2Homemade lime cordial

3Frozen limeade concentrate, undiluted

4Bottled lime juice plus sugar

5Lemon cordial or lemonade concentrate

6Falernum or a spiced lime syrup

7Fresh lime juice on its own (the swap that usually disappoints)