If you want to know how to make plum syrup, the short answer is this: plum syrup is a rich, ruby-to-purple, sweet-tart-and-jammy fruit syrup made by simmering fresh or frozen plums with sugar and water, then mashing and straining the fruit into a glossy, pourable syrup. One bottle stirs into a spiced-plum latte, cold brew, iced tea, sparkling water or cocktails, and drizzles over desserts. The whole thing takes about 20 minutes and a single small pot.
Below is a reliable plum syrup recipe with amounts, ordered steps, a plain-versus-spiced and sweet-versus-tart guide, and the one food-safety rule that matters most. If you just want the plain sugar-and-water base on its own, that lives in our guide to how to make simple syrup; for the whole flavour family, from vanilla and caramel to nut and fruit, see coffee syrups explained.
What plum syrup is
Plum syrup is a fruit syrup: a simple syrup that has been simmered with real plums until it takes on their colour, juice and flavour. The taste is deep and plummy, sweet up front with a pleasant tartness from the skins, and a soft, jammy roundness underneath. Those skins are doing a lot of work, since they give the syrup its beautiful ruby-to-purple colour and most of its bright, tangy edge, which is exactly why you leave them on.
The plums you choose set the tone. Sweet dessert plums, the soft, juicy kind you eat out of hand such as Victoria or a dark red plum, make a rounder, mellower syrup. Tart plums, or small damsons, give a punchier, more balanced syrup with a grown-up tang that keeps the sugar in check. Plenty of people land on a mix, or a sweet-plum base with a squeeze of lemon to sharpen it. Plums grow across Europe, East Asia and the Americas, so whatever is good at your market will work here.
Like other fruit syrups, plum syrup is a close cousin of cherry syrup, the same stone-fruit trick of fruit simmered into a sugar syrup and then strained, and of the deeper, jammy fig syrup. Once you can make one, you can make all three.
The one rule: pit the plums, never the stones
Here is the single food-safety point to get right: pit the plums and discard the hard stones. Plums are stone fruit, and like the pits of cherries, apricots and peaches, the hard inner stones are not something you want to crush or cook into your syrup. Halve each plum, lift out and throw away every stone before the fruit goes in the pot, and do not smash, blend or simmer the stones to try to "get more flavour" from them. You don't need to, since all the flavour you are after comes from the fruit and its skins. Throw the stones away.
Ripe plums usually twist apart easily around the stone; firmer ones may need a knife run around the seam. Frozen plums are often sold already pitted and sliced, which makes them an easy shortcut here. Either way, give your fruit a quick check before it goes in the pot.
Turning it into a spiced plum syrup
The plain fruit syrup is lovely on its own, but plum takes warm spice beautifully. Drop a cinnamon stick, a single star anise pod or a strip of lemon peel into the pot as it simmers and you have a spiced plum syrup: warm, mulled and autumnal, the kind of thing that makes a cup taste like a spiced-plum crumble. Use culinary Chinese star anise (Illicium verum), the familiar cooking spice, and never Japanese star anise (Illicium anisatum), which is not edible. One pod is plenty, because star anise is strong. A strip of lemon peel on its own, without the warm spice, keeps things brighter and more jammy.
What you'll need
This is a small-batch plum syrup built on equal parts sugar and water, with plums steeped into it. Scale the amounts up freely for a bigger bottle.
- 1 cup (about 200 g) sugar — plain white granulated is the neutral default
- 1 cup (about 240 ml) water
- 2 generous handfuls (roughly 1.5 to 2 cups) pitted, chopped plums, fresh or frozen, skins on for colour
- 1 cinnamon stick or 1 star anise pod (optional) — for a spiced plum syrup
- A strip of lemon peel or a squeeze of lemon (optional) — lifts and brightens the fruit
Gear is minimal: a small saucepan, a spoon or masher, a fine-mesh sieve, a funnel, and a clean glass bottle or jar with a tight lid. Want a deeper, more caramelly base? Swap in some brown sugar, but taste as you go, since it can compete with the plum.
How to Make Plum Syrup, Step by Step
- Pit and chop the plums. Halve each plum, remove and discard every stone, then roughly chop. Leave the skins on for colour. If you are using frozen plums, there is no need to thaw them first.
- Warm the sugar and water. Combine the sugar and water in a small saucepan over medium heat and stir until the sugar has fully dissolved and the liquid runs clear.
- Add the plums and any spice. Tip in the chopped plums, along with the cinnamon stick, star anise or strip of lemon if you are spicing it, and bring the pot to a gentle simmer.
- Simmer 12 to 18 minutes. Let it bubble softly, stirring now and then, until the plums are soft and slumped and the liquid has turned deep ruby-purple.
- Mash lightly. Press the plums against the side of the pot with a spoon or masher to release more juice and colour. A light mash keeps the straining easy, so there is no need to puree them.
- Steep off the heat. Turn off the heat and let everything sit for a few minutes so the syrup can pull in the last of the fruit and spice.
- Strain. Pour through a fine-mesh sieve set over a bowl, pressing the fruit gently with the back of a spoon to squeeze out the syrup. For a clearer pour, strain a second time or line the sieve with cheesecloth, and fish out the cinnamon stick or star anise.
- Cool and bottle. Let the syrup cool completely, then funnel it into a clean, sealable bottle or jar and refrigerate.
Don't toss the strained plum pulp: spoon it over yogurt, oatmeal or ice cream, or stir it into a quick compote so nothing goes to waste.
Plain vs spiced, sweet vs tart plums
Use this as a quick guide to pick your plums and decide whether to spice the pot. Tart plums and damsons can take a touch more sugar because they start out sharper, while sweet dessert plums often want a squeeze of lemon to balance them.
| Version | What goes in | Flavour | Good with |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plain, sweet plums | Ripe dessert plums, sugar, water | Round, mellow, jammy | Lattes, cold foam, desserts |
| Plain, tart plums or damsons | Tart plums or damsons, a touch more sugar | Punchy, bright, balanced | Sodas, iced tea, cocktails |
| Spiced plum syrup | Any plums plus cinnamon or star anise and a strip of lemon | Warm, mulled, autumnal | Spiced-plum lattes, mulled and winter drinks |
How to use plum coffee syrup and more
Start small, because plum syrup is intense and a little goes a long way. Add a teaspoon or two, taste, and build from there.
- Spiced-plum latte: stir a spoonful of spiced plum syrup into the bottom of the cup, then add espresso and steamed or cold milk. It is also lovely drizzled over a cold foam.
- Cold brew and iced coffee: this is where plum coffee syrup really shines, as the tart-sweet fruit cuts cleanly through cold, concentrated coffee.
- Iced tea and sparkling water: stir a measure into iced black or green tea, or pour it over ice and top with sparkling water for a homemade plum soda.
- Cocktails and mocktails: shake it into a gin sour, a spritz or a lemonade; the spiced version is made for autumn and winter drinks.
- Desserts: spoon it over ice cream, pancakes, cheesecake, yogurt or an almond cake.
Storage and shelf life
Plum syrup is fresh fruit and sugar, so treat it like a perishable. Keep it refrigerated in a clean, sealed bottle, and use it within about a week while the flavour is at its brightest. The sugar helps preserve it, but real fruit syrups simply don't keep as long as a plain simple syrup does. Pour it directly or use a clean spoon each time so you don't introduce anything that speeds spoilage.
To hold it longer, freeze the extra: pour the syrup into an ice-cube tray, freeze it, then bag the cubes and thaw a portion whenever you need it. As with any homemade syrup, trust your senses. If it smells off, looks cloudy or turns fizzy, or grows anything fuzzy, then when in doubt, throw it out. Responses to different foods vary, and this is a flavour guide, not medical advice.
That really is all there is to it. Once you have made plum syrup once, the same simmer, mash and strain rhythm opens up nearly every stone fruit and berry at the market, which is exactly why this fruit-syrup method is such a handy one to have in your back pocket.