Homemade Lemonade

5 from 2 votes

Old-fashioned, freshly squeezed lemonade made from scratch with just 3 simple ingredients and a lemon simple syrup. Sweet, tart, and easy to scale up for a crowd!

Course Drinks

Cuisine American

Keyword easy lemonade recipe, Homemade Lemonade, lemonade recipe

Prep Time 10

Cook Time 10

Chilling Time 4

Total Time 4 20

Servings people

Calories 138kcal

Author Blair Lonergan

Ingredients

4 cups water, divided
1 cup granulated sugar
2 lemon zest strips
1 cup lemon juice (from about 5 to 6 large lemons)
Optional garnish: lemon slices; fresh mint

Instructions

Make the lemon simple syrup. In a small saucepan, combine 1 cup of the water, the sugar, and the lemon zest strips. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat, cover, and simmer for 5 minutes.
Cool it completely. Remove from the heat, discard the zest strips, and let the syrup come to room temperature before using it.
Juice the lemons. Roll room-temperature lemons firmly on the counter, then squeeze to get 1 cup of juice. Strain out the pulp or leave it in, whichever you prefer.
Stir together in a pitcher. Combine the remaining 3 cups of water, the lemon juice, and the cooled simple syrup.
Taste and adjust. Add water for a milder glass, extra syrup for sweeter, or extra lemon juice for tarter.
Chill and serve. Refrigerate for at least 4 hours. Serve over ice, garnished with lemon slices and fresh mint.

Notes

How many lemons: plan on about 5 to 6 large lemons, 8 medium, or 10 to 12 small ones for 1 cup of juice. Room-temperature lemons rolled on the counter give up more juice than cold ones.
Avoiding bitterness: peel only the yellow zest. The white pith underneath is bitter and it will carry into the syrup.
Why simple syrup: sugar stirred straight into juice sinks to the bottom of the pitcher. A cooked syrup blends in and stays blended.
Taste before serving: lemons vary, so the ratio is a starting point. Too tart, add syrup. Too sweet, add lemon juice rather than water. Tastes flat, add a small pinch of salt.
Less sugar: make the syrup with ¾ cup of sugar for a less-sweet glass.
With honey: substitute 1 cup of honey for the granulated sugar. Honey is sweeter, so you may want extra water at the end.
Strawberry lemonade: substitute 1 cup of pureed, strained fresh strawberries for the water in the simple syrup.
Fizzy lemonade: make the syrup as written, then use club soda or seltzer in place of the 3 cups of water in the pitcher.
Bottled lemon juice: it works, but the flavor isn't as fresh, so it isn't my first choice. Taste as you go, since bottled juice often runs more sour.
Gallon batch: for a full gallon, use 2¾ cups lemon juice, 2¾ cups sugar, and 10½ cups water. Simmer 2¾ cups of that water with the sugar for the syrup and add the rest to the jug.
Storage: keeps in the refrigerator for up to 5 days, or in the freezer for up to 3 months. Stir before serving.
Make-ahead: the simple syrup can be made up to a month in advance and kept in a jar in the fridge.

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