Senegalese Jus de Bissap, an iced drink made with dried hibiscus flowers. Sweetened with sugar and flavoured with orange blossom and fresh mint.
Hibiscus is used to make drinks in many places around the world with the dried flowers being used as an ingredient in Mexican cooking. We have a recipe for Tacos de Jamaica so don’t throw out the soaked flowers and make some tasty vegan tacos.
When buying dried hibiscus it will be named differently depending on where in the world you are buying it. It can be called dried hibiscus, Bissap, flor de jamaica, zobo or sorrel. Look for dried flowers with a deep red colour. They should be whole and not have any white on them.
How to make Jus de Bissap – Iced Hibiscus Tea
Jus de Bissap is quick and easy to make and the juice will stay fresh in the fridge for up to 4 days. The juice can be served hot or cold. It’s traditional to serve cold over ice and makes for a wonderful summer drink to quench your thirst.
- Quickly rinse the dried hibiscus under running cold water to remove any dirt.
- Bring a pot of 1500ml of water to a rolling boil then turn off the heat.
- Immediately add the hibiscus and make sure it’s all submerged in the water.
- Let it steep for 15 minutes then drain out the hibiscus. Make sure to keep it aside and make our vegan Tacos de Jamaica.
- Add the liquid back to the pot. It should be a deep red colour. Add 60g of white sugar and stir until dissolved. The amount of sugar added to the Jus de Bissap can be adjusted to your tastes. 60g will give you juice that’s noticeably sweet but not too much. Make sure to taste and adjust the amount of sugar until you are happy with the sweetness.
- Add an optional ¼ teaspoon of orange blossom water to add another floral dimension to the drink.
- Serve your Jus de Bissap over plenty of ice and garnish with some fresh mint.
Senegalese Jus de Bissap – Iced Hibiscus Tea
Ingredients
- 50 g dried hibiscus flowers
- 60 g white sugar
- 1500 ml boiling water
- ¼ teaspoon orange blossom water
- Ice and fresh mint leaves to serve
Instructions
- Quickly rinse the dried hibiscus under running cold water to remove any dirt.
- Bring a pot of 1500ml of water to a rolling boil then turn off the heat.
- Immediately add the hibiscus and make sure it’s all submerged in the water.
- Let the hibiscus steep for 15 minutes then drain out the hibiscus.
- Add the liquid back to the pot. It should be a deep red colour. Add the sugar and stir until dissolved
- Taste and adjust the amount of sugar until you are happy with the sweetness.
- Add the optional orange blossom water. Stil well.
- Decant the juice into a sterilised jug or bottle and add to the fridge for at least 3 hours.
- Serve your Jus de Bissap over plenty of ice and garnish with some fresh mint.
