Ume Syrup with Honey and LemonA Variation on Ume Syrup

A variation on ume syrup, made with honey and lemon.

The freshness of lemon and the richness of honey give the syrup a different character from the classic version.

Ingredients and tools

We made a small batch. The jar is Muji’s 500 ml soda glass sealed jar. If your lemon is organic and unwaxed, you can use it with the peel on.

• 200 g (7 oz) ume
• ½ lemon
• 100 g (3½ oz) honey
• 100 g (3½ oz) rock sugar
• A colander
• A storage jar
• A bamboo skewer
• Paper towels

Fresh ume are hard to find outside Japan. See finding ume outside Japan on the overview page.

When to make	June
Time	About 2 weeks
Storage	Cool, dark place. Refrigerate after opening. Take out the ume and lemon after about a month

How to make it

Wash the ume

Put the ume in a bowl and gently wash off dust and dirt in plenty of water. Drain and put them in a colander or on a tray.

Dry the ume

Carefully wipe each ume dry with a paper towel.

Remove the stem ends

Pick out the little stem ends with a bamboo skewer. Be gentle so the tip of the skewer doesn’t damage the fruit.

If you have time, let them air-dry further in the shade. (If you wiped them thoroughly, you can skip this.)

Sterilize the jar

Sterilize the jar in boiling water. (Remove rubber seals and metal clips first.) Be careful not to burn yourself.

Put the jar in a large pot with enough water to cover it and heat. When it boils, keep it at a gentle boil for 10 minutes.

Stand the jar upside down on a clean cloth and let it dry completely.

Fill the jar

Layer the ume, rock sugar and lemon in the jar, alternating in 2–3 layers.

Finally, pour in the honey slowly.

All set!

Storage

Keep it in a cool, dark place out of the sun. Gently shake the jar 2–3 times a day to mix everything.

After one week. Much of the rock sugar has dissolved, and plenty of juice has come out of the ume.

After two weeks. The ume have wrinkled and the rock sugar has all dissolved: the syrup is done! Once opened, keep it in the fridge to prevent mold.

How to drink it

Mix the syrup with sparkling water, milk or soy milk. About 2 tbsp of syrup to four times as much liquid is a good guide; adjust to taste. With the richness of honey, it’s mellower and sweeter than the classic green ume syrup.

Ume honey lemon soda

Ume honey lemon soda (serves 1)

• Ingredients: 2 tbsp ume honey lemon syrup, 120 ml (½ cup) sparkling water, ice to taste.
• Method: Put the syrup and ice in a glass and pour in the sparkling water.

After about a month, take out the ume and lemon. They’re good made into jam.