Fresh Dill Syrup
Use fresh dill - dried loses most of its character. The feathery fronds have the most flavor.
Use fresh dill - dried loses most of its character. The feathery fronds have the most flavor.
- 1 cupfresh dill fronds(loosely packed)
- 1 cupwater
- 1 cupwhite sugar
- 1Add blanched dill to warm syrup.
- 2Strain through a fine mesh strainer.
- 3Refrigerate and use within two weeks.
Store in a sealed glass bottle in the refrigerator for up to ten days. Dill flavor and color fade quickly. Keep refrigerated.
Use only the feathery fronds of dill, not the stems — the stems are more bitter and fibrous and degrade the syrup. Fresh dill is essentially irreplaceable here; dried dill has almost none of the bright, anise-tinged volatile character that makes fresh dill distinctive. Blanch the dill fronds in boiling water for ten seconds and shock in ice water before adding to the syrup base to preserve the vivid green color. Steep the blanched dill in the warm syrup off the heat for no more than five minutes; prolonged heat drives off the delicate aromatic compounds.
Dill (Anethum graveolens) is native to the eastern Mediterranean and western Asia, where it has been used as both a culinary and medicinal herb for over five thousand years — the name derives from the Old Norse dilla, meaning to soothe, reflecting its ancient use as a digestive remedy. Dill seeds were found in the tomb of Tutankhamun, demonstrating its use in ancient Egypt, and the herb is documented in ancient Greek and Roman texts as a common kitchen plant. Dill entered the American craft cocktail world through two converging trends: the Nordic-inspired cocktail movement that brought Scandinavian aquavit and dill-paired flavors to American menus, and the savory cocktail trend of the 2010s that treated vegetables and herbs as first-class cocktail ingredients. Dill syrup pairs exceptionally well with vodka, aquavit, and gin, and has appeared in Bloody Mary variations, Nordic Sours, and as a pairing with lemon and cucumber.
A dill-cucumber syrup combining equal parts dill fronds and cucumber creates a synergistic cocktail modifier that amplifies the green, fresh character of both ingredients. A dill-lemon syrup adds the zest of one lemon to the warm finished syrup and steeps for five minutes, creating a bright herbal preparation excellent in gin cocktails. For a dill-capers variation suited to Dirty Martini riffs, add one teaspoon of brine from quality capers to the finished cooled syrup.
No common top-eight allergens. Naturally vegan and gluten-free. Dill is in the Apiaceae plant family — those with Apiaceae sensitivities involving celery, parsley, or carrot may experience cross-reactivity.