Homemade Strawberry Syrup (For Drinks!)

Give your drinks a boost of fruity flavor with my Homemade Strawberry Syrup recipe! Made with just 2 simple ingredients (including real strawberries 🍓), this delightful DIY fresh strawberry syrup is your gateway to the best strawberry milk, fruit tea, coffee drinks, homemade sodas, and so much more!

It must be summer, because I’ve been on something of a fruity kick lately—I’ve been adding blueberry coffee creamer to my morning java, then slurping down creamy Starbucks pink drinks or juicy cool lime, summer berry, and strawberry acai refreshers in the afternoons. 

So, when my almost-kindergartener (when did THAT happen?!? 🤯) requested a strawberry milk the other day, I couldn’t help but smile. Like mother, like daughter! 👯

But, rather than indulge her with the store-bought version that listed a whopping 9 ingredients (including high fructose corn syrup, artificial flavors, two shades of food dye, and exactly zero strawberries), I decided to take matters into my own hands. This sweet syrup was the result, and it adds sweet strawberry flavor to anything you from French toast to coffee!

It’s brightly colored thanks to actual strawberries and is sweetened with sugar. So good, so easy, and something I can feel good about stirring into my baby girl’s milk. But it’s not just for her—I’ve since discovered one of my new favorite drinks, strawberry milk lattes are the bomb. 😋

Jump to:

• What is Strawberry Syrup?
• What does it taste like?
• Why You’ll Love This Recipe For Strawberry Simple Syrup
• Ingredients Needed
• Substitutions
• How To Make Strawberry Syrup For Drinks & More!
• Optional Variations & Dietary Adjustments
• Serving Suggestions
• Recipe Success Tips
• FAQs
• Strawberry Simple Syrup Nutrition
• Other Homemade Syrups For Drinks
• Homemade Strawberry Syrup

What is Strawberry Syrup?

As with my other homemade coffee syrup recipes, this strawberry flavor fruit syrup is just a simple syrup infusion. Made with sugar and fresh strawberries in the peak of the season, it’s the perfect way to sweeten your beverages while adding a yummy layer of berry-powered intrigue. 

You can add it to milk for an upgraded version of the school lunch favorite, then add a shot of espresso for a delightful strawberry latte, or pour some into a glass of club soda for an all-natural strawberry soda. It’s also a lovely addition to your bar cart—use it for daiquiris, gin or tequila smashes, or sangrias, to name just a few.

But, don’t feel like you have to use this strawberry syrup for drinks exclusively—it’s also great for moistening layer cakes, flavoring whipped cream, drizzling over ice cream, or adding cheerful, fruity flavor to just about anything you can think of.

What does it taste like?

This DIY Monin strawberry syrup captures the vibrant, sweet, and irresistibly fragrant essence of a sun-kissed strawberry in a bottle. Each spoonful is like a burst of summer, with the lush sweetness of ripe strawberries taking center stage. 

The syrup's naturally rich, ruby-red hue is as inviting as its flavor, which balances perfectly between sugary sweetness and the natural tartness of fresh berries. The optional splash of pure strawberry extract adds an extra boost of candied strawberry intensity—perfect for drizzling into drinks or pouring over treats.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe For Strawberry Simple Syrup

• Speedy & Simple - Just 10 minutes of active prep time and 2 basic ingredients are all that stands between you and strawberry heaven.
• Versatile & Customizable AF - Use this strawberry flavored syrup for milk, coffee, cocktails, breakfast, or baking. You can also add extras for fun twists like strawberry rhubarb syrup or strawberry basil syrup. Read on below for tons of ideas!
• All-Natural Alternative - I loved sodas and flavored milks as a kid, but as a grown-up who happens to be an RDN, I hate all the weird additives that go into most store-bought options. This homemade recipe for strawberry syrup has all the bright, colorful, kid-friendly goodness I remember without any of the artificial crap that makes me cringe as an adult.

Ingredients Needed

As promised, this strawberry simple syrup recipe is made with just a few basics:

• Strawberries - Feel free to use either fresh or frozen berries depending on the season. In spring and early summer, fresh are often cheaper than frozen and you get the added benefit of being able to smell the clamshells—the more fragrant they are, the tastier they’ll be. But, if you’re craving some berry magic in the dead of winter, making strawberry syrup with frozen strawberries is generally the cheapest, tastiest move. 
• Granulated Sugar - Plain white sugar adds neutral sweetness, letting the true flavor of the strawberries shine through.
• Strawberry Extract - Optional, but excellent for adding an extra pop of strawberry yum. 

Substitutions

Need to customize your syrup? Not to worry. Here are some easy ingredient swaps to try:

• Strawberries - This recipe will also work well with any other berry variety you prefer, including blackberries, raspberries, blueberries, or boysenberries. You can also mix and match if you want!
• Granulated Sugar - Feel free to swap in less-processed cane sugar, or use a cup-for-cup sugar alternative like monkfruit or stevia to keep it diabetic-friendly.
• Strawberry Extract - As I mentioned, this is totally optional. Feel free to omit it, or trade in other flavor extracts for exciting combinations—other berries, kiwi, banana, or lemon extracts could all be fun.

How To Make Strawberry Syrup For Drinks & More!

This simple strawberry syrup recipe comes together in just a few simple steps. Here’s how:

Step 1: Slice. Slice your strawberries and put them in a large bowl.

Step 2: Toss the berries with sugar until well coated and the sugar is completely moistened.

Step 3: Rest. Allow the strawberry mixture to sit at room temperature for 2 hours, tossing halfway through.

Step 4: Strain. After 2 hours, strain the strawberry syrup from the strawberry pulp using a fine mesh strainer. Reserve the syrup, discard or save the strawberry pulp for another use..

Optional Variations & Dietary Adjustments

When you make strawberry syrup at home, you can customize it to your heart’s content. Here are just a few ideas to get you started:

• Sugar-Free Strawberry Syrup - Keep your strawberry milk syrup low-carb and diabetic-friendly by swapping in your favorite sugar-free sweetener. Just make sure to either choose a 1-to-1 baking substitute OR add the sweetener to taste. (Many non-sugar sweeteners are way sweeter than sugar!)
• Organic Strawberry Syrup - Use organic berries and organic sugar for an extra level of confidence in this all-natural strawberry sugar syrup. 
• Mixed Berry Syrup - 
• Strawberry [Fill in the Blank] Syrup - Try making strawberry lemonade syrup by adding lemon zest and replacing some of the water with lemon juice, or try strawberry basil simple syrup by adding a few sprigs of basil after the syrup comes off the heat and letting it steep for 10 minutes while it cools. Mint or tarragon would both be great, too! You can also add a bit of citric acid for tartness, or try adding other flavoring extractives to suit your mood.  

Serving Suggestions

Once you make a batch of this berry-infused syrup, I have a feeling you’ll find plenty of ways to use it. Here are just a few ideas to get you started:

• Strawberry Milk: Whisk together cold milk and a few tablespoons of strawberry syrup for a sweet, nostalgic treat. Feel free to use either dairy milk or plant-based milk!
• Iced Strawberry Lattes: Take your strawberry milk and caffeinate it with a shot of espresso.
• Strawberry Cold Foam: Add a flavorful topper to all your favorite iced coffee drinks (or iced matchas?!?) by making Starbucks-style cold foam, replacing the vanilla syrup with strawberry. 
• Strawberry Whipped Cream: Add a dollop of decadence to any dessert with strawberry whipped cream. Use a few tablespoons of chilled strawberry simple syrup to sweeten a bowl of chilled cream, then whip till soft peaks form. 
• Strawberry Soda: Add a few tablespoons to your next La Croix and serve it over ice for a refreshing summer sipper.
• Strawberry Cocktails: Mix up some delicious drinks with a strawberry twist. Whether it's a strawberry mojito, a berry-infused sangria, or a simple strawberry vodka lemonade, one thing is certain—it’s about to be a very happy hour indeed!
• Strawberry Desserts: Drizzle this syrup over cheesecake, an a la mode berry crisp, or blend it into a plain vanilla milkshake to add a burst of fruity freshness.

Recipe Success Tips

• Invest in proper storage. A syrup bottle will save you the headache of sticky countertops and refrigerator shelves.
• Mind your scraps! Just because we don’t want the strawberry pulp in our syrup doesn’t mean it’s done for. Use it as a chunky topper for ice cream, yogurt, strawberry waffles, or anything else that sounds tasty. You can also blend them into a strawberry puree, into your breakfast smoothies, or simmer them down until they’re thick and sticky to make a quick freezer strawberry jam. 
• For a thicker syrup, try adding more sugar or using less strawberries!

FAQs

Strawberry Simple Syrup Nutrition

Per serving, this strawberry syrup has about 68 calories, which all come from carbs—specifically 17 grams of sugar. There’s no fat or protein, and virtually no sodium.

It's primarily sugar since it's an infused simple syrup, so it's best used in moderation. Think of it as a way to add a pop of flavor and color rather than a significant nutritional contribution to your meals or drinks. Just a splash can transform a dish or drink, adding yummy berry flavor without loading up on too many calories!

Total nutritional content per serving is:

• Calories: 68 calories
• Total Fat: 0 grams
• Protein: 0 grams
• Sodium: 0 mg
• Carbohydrates: 17 grams
• Sugar: 17 grams

*This nutritional information is an estimate and calculated based on the ingredients used to create the recipe. The nutritional value of your ingredients may differ slightly. Furthermore, this food is not intended to prevent, diagnose, cure, or treat any disease.

Other Homemade Syrups For Drinks

xoxo Megan