My introduction to sorrel happened in a Jamaican restaurant long ago and it was love at first sip. Something about that wonderful mix of sweet, sour, spicy and the seductive deep red hue of sorrel always lingered long after the last drop was gone. ‘I wish I could make that,’ I’d think. Then one day before I moved to Namibia for a teaching gig, it occurred to me ‘I can try.’
I’m a firm believer in ancestral memory and such, so I figured that while making sorrel might not be in my DNA (or then again it might be because the Senegalese make it and call it Bissap), I might come up with something respectable anyway. I went to the store and got myself a package of dried sorrel. My first surprise was that sorrel is a hibiscus flower. I started combing recipes and labels on the sorrel I liked. My next surprise was that it was traditionally served as a Christmas drink in Jamaica and folk often mixed it with rum. The third surprise was that sorrel can be as wild or as tame as the person who makes it. There are no hard and fast rules. So here I am, many batches of good sorrel later ready to share my recipe.
Why?
Because sorrel is a delicious vitamin c rich, blood purifying, digestive powerhouse. I have been reading up on Ayurveda lately and somehow it’s helping Robin’s teachings about the healing capacities of the spices we use in cooking to sink in.
I’d always associated sorrel with summer, but late last fall I served it warm to friends because it felt like the thing to do. Later I found that hibiscus flowers are used against colds and fevers. When you add ginger,cinnamon, and cloves–which are great for working through colds, coughs and flus; helping to heal respiratory problems; and moving mucous out of our systems– you’ve got yourself some delicious medicine. Add your own spin to it. Have fun. Add rum if you want. Enjoy.
Ekere’s Sassy Sorrel
1 cup Dried hibiscus flowers
as much fresh ginger as you’d like
3 cloves
generous sprinkling of cinnamon or 3/4 sticks
1/2 lime or orange
honey or agave to taste
Put seven cups of water in a pot on the stove to boil. Meanwhile, take the fresh ginger, peel it and pound it with a mortar.
Place the hibiscus flowers in a mason jar and add the ginger, cinnamon, and cloves.
Cut the lime in half. Add the juice of one half of the lime and slice the other half and drop the slices in my jar. If I am using an orange, I give it a little squeeze, and put half of it sliced in my jar (I eat the other half)
When the water boils, pour it over the herbs in the mason jar. Fill the jar all the way to the top and cap it. Let this sit overnight. Ah, the anticipation.
The next day, strain the sorrel making sure to squeeze the hibiscus to get all the good stuff out. Then add either honey or agave to taste.
Stir, stir, stir.
Drink, drink,drink.
Remember that you can get as creative as you want with this. I have added rose petals and lemon balm to my sorrel too.
sorrel AKA bissap
Any other sorrel recipes out there?
The Sage Honey 
Wow! All this time I thought I wasn’t a big sorrel fan I was. Because I love hibiscus! I like the idea of letting this sit overnight so all the essence can slowly steep to perfection and the citrus is a great addition as well.
Lorenza
Let me know if you try the recipe or if you create one of your own. I actually thought I didn’t really like hibiscus until I found out it is sorrel. lol
sounds very delicious, one of these days Im gonna get the ingredients and make us some sorrel: rum sorrel for Yehudi and me and virgin sorrel for Carlili!
I like bisap and once at Dina Veeris I also drank a cold hibiscus juice!!!
When I was little we had a hibiscus tree/plant in the garden.
Wow! You had a hibiscus plant in your garden? My goodness. I saw the flower for the first time in August. It is so pretty. Was the hibiscus juice prepared like sorrel?
Well Girl, You know that this is one of my favourite drinks. Mum does it at Christmas with the rum. It is one of the best juices in life and all the time you stayed by me in London I did not know that you loved it like that, or I would have made some for you.
On another note, it’s interesting that although I grew up drinking Sorrel and am totally unaware that it was such a healthy drink. Thanks Ekere for this information.
Gurl, I had no idea sorrel was so healthy either until I thought about how the ingredients worked together. Our foreparents were geniuses! The path towards health can be delicious.
Simmer sorrel with lemongrass stalks for 20 minutes. Add honey, fresh mint and ice. My kids love this, and my Jamaican friends say that it reminds them of their childhoods.
Oh, I like the lemongrass idea a lot. I just made a fresh batch of sorrel today. A few months back I decided to try simmering my sorrel prior to steeping it (advice from Trinidadian and Jamaican Sistren) and I love the way the flavors come together when I do. And the fresh mint sounds divine.
Thanks!
I came across hibiscus flowers in this international grocery store in Bushwick today and decided I would finally try to make sorrel with your recipe of course.
Last night, Maia’s grandfather gave me something similar to lemongrass that is from the Dominican Republic and I think I’ll add that to the mix! Will find out the name and tell you how it goes:).
Yum! And I am definitely interested in this Spanish speaking cousin to Lemongrass. Fill me in! 🙂
Maria, It was nice to meet you the other day at Guru’s Health food store. I really enjoyed your spirit. I also looked at some of your videos and found them to be very interesting. I am very much into using herbs for healing and am learning a great deal by what you have been teaching. I would like to attend your next seminar/class. Please keep me informed. All the best and be well. Marcus
Marcus! It was fantastic meeting you at Guru Health too. I will let you know when I have another class. I need to do it soon before all of the plants go back to sleep. Be well!
one love,
Mariah