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Elderberry syrup is awesome stuff. If you haven’t seen it yet, it’s on my list of Ways to Prevent Colds and Flu this winter. I simply love it. (Along with fermented cod liver oil; more on that next week.) Unfortunately, if you buy the syrup from the store it comes with a very high price tag — $15 for about 4 oz. of syrup is typical. Many brands also have flavors, colors, and sweeteners added to them. Not exactly what I like in my medicine, how about you?
Luckily, elderberry syrup is easy to prepare and quite cheap, too. I figured my cost was only about $5 for nearly a quart of syrup.
You will need:
- 1 cup dried elderberries (about 1/4 lb.) — You can buy these at Mountain Rose Herbs
- 4 cups filtered water
- 1 cup raw honey
- 2 tbsp. fresh grated ginger (optional)
- A 1-qt. mason jar with lid
First, gather all your supplies:
Measure the elderberries (just enough!):
Add the elderberries and the water to a medium saucepan (and ginger, if using):
Now, turn the pan on medium-high heat:
When it starts to boil, let it cook for 2 – 3 minutes. Then, turn it off. Let it sit, steaming and steeping, for about 10 – 15 min.:
Strain the juice into a mason jar, pressing the berries to get all the healthy, yummy goodness out:
Now, let it cool until it is about room temperature, then add the honey. If you don’t wait until it’s cool, you’ll kill all the beneficial enzymes in the raw honey, which are excellent for helping while sick too!
Stir or shake the jar to combine, then refrigerate. Done! You now have elderberry syrup. 
If you’re wondering, most people recommend using equal amounts of juice and honey to create a syrup. It may last a little longer if you do this. However, if you’re going to finish it in 4 – 6 weeks, you only need a little honey to sweeten it. I’ve found that 1 part honey to 2 – 3 parts juice works just fine, and saves some money on the raw honey. This does need to be refrigerated!
There you go! A simple, 20-minute task (and most if it is wait time).
Do you make or use elderberry? Do you find that it helps?
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TESTING!
I would love to hear how you suggest using this syrup.
Thanks for posting! I've read that nursing moms can't take elderberry. Do you have any remedies for nursing moms? (My baby is just 4 weeks old, so I'm nursing very frequently.)
I'm new to the idea of elderberries. Can you tell me where the most likely place is to find the dried ones? Thank you!
Angie,
I usually take 1 – 2 tbsp. per day; we take more (up to 1 tbsp. per hour) if we are sick.
Erin,
I think that was said because some elderberry syrups contain alcohol, which of course is not a good idea while nursing. Since this doesn't contain any alcohol, it should be fine while nursing.
Dawn,
Mountain Rose Herbs is a good place to buy!
I was really good about using it last year, and we all made it through flu season just fine. This year I haven't been so diligent and I've been fighting a cold, amongst other things, for WEEKS!
Kate,
Thank you! This is great! I am sick of paying $28 for 8 ounces and it is used up soo quickly!
Can you just eat the elderberries or are they too bitter? Where did you get your elderberries from?
I've heard a lot of praise for elderberry syrup, thanks for the tutorial! What is it about the elderberries that cause them to prevent illness?
Monique,
Elderberry is awesome stuff, isn't it!
Nicole,
I got them from a local coop, but Mountain Rose Herbs is probably the best-known source (it's where my coop gets them from). I've heard that they can be poisonous if eaten unripe or uncooked (definitely if unripe), so I wouldn't — I'd make syrup, jelly, or something with them to be safe.
Stephanie,
There's some component that makes flu and cold viruses unable to establish themselves in the body. Here's a link describing it: http://www.herbwisdom.com/herb-elderberry.html
I use elderberry for the whole family any time anyone seems to be getting sick, or if we've been around sick people. I was just using the Sambucol brand, because there was a huge sale (on clearance – large $20 bottles for $2.99) on them at our local CVS, and I bought them out at several different stores. I'm glad to know that I can just make my own though – because I can control the ingredients AND because we're out. Thanks for the recipe!
Just made my first batch a couple weeks ago. We added a cinnamon stick and whole cloves and it tastes so good too.
If we can't find elderberries — is it possible to make the syrup with elderberry juice from the local health food store?
Eating Elderberries can give one a terrible tummy ache. They are not consumable in this manner by humans. Thanks for the Elderberry Syrup post! I'd been wanting a recipe and stumbled across this by chance.
Thank you SO much for this! We use elderberry syrup all year round when, but particularly in the winter, preventatively – and the cost is ridiculous! How long do you think this will keep in the fridge?
We make a very similar Elderberry syrup, and it is one easy way to keep the kids from getting sick. I also found that not as much hones is needed as some recipes call for, especially if you go through it as fast as we do. Just found your blog and enjoying looking around!
Thanks for the tip on where to get dried elderberries! I was buying it last winter, but stopped because it was so expensive. I know Dr. N says in "GAPS" to just go for a nature walk and pick some, but I wouldn't begin to know where to look for wild ones!
I have my own eldeberrys growing down our driveway. How do you dry them? hang them upside down?
Hi Jamie,
If you have wild elderberries, awesome! You don't need to dry them. You can just use about a cup of fresh elderberries in 3 – 4 cups of water to make juice. Cook, mash, and strain. Please make sure they aren't poke berries, though. I have those growing in my yard and they are poisonous. They look REALLY similar, but poke berries grow in a long string, while elderberries grow in a large bunch. Google some images if you're not sure. I hope they are elderberries!
I'm trying to find the elderberries on Mountain Rose Herbs, but only see powder. Will that work in this recipe?
Katie,
I have seen dried elderberries there, they should have those. I have never tried powder so I am not sure if it would work or how.
Hey Katie,
I made a whole recipe and (we weren’t taking it everyday, just when something seemed to be coming on) it spoiled (or rather fermented) in the fridge. How long does it typically last for you? I decided to make half a recipe instead, and maybe we’ll take it a little more often.
All the photos show up as “?” for me. Is there a issue with the page or is it on my end?
What does it taste like?
Can you re-upload the pictures? they don’t show up and I’d love to see them (and also be able to pin it to pinterest!
Excited to try this recipe as it looks super easy! Thanks for sharing!
It’s on my list to do.
When we moved our site over to WP early this year none of the pictures transferred so it’s been quite the job to update all the posts!
I would also love the pictures. We just started taking elderberry syrup which we bought over the counter. My family has been hit hard with seasonal influenza over the last week, and I am resolving to change things and bolster our immune systems. The lost productivity of a week down is just too much!
My mother grows elderberries in her yard and juiced some fresh. Do you have any idea how much juice I would put in this recipe instead of dried elderberries?
I can’t remember exactly what the recipe says, I think you end up with about 2 c. of juice at the end (before adding honey). So that is how much you would use.
I am having a hard time trying to find these elderberries. I have used your link to buy them, but they are showing powder only. Can you please send any other places that you know of that sells them in bulk. I really want to try this recipe out. Just started hearing about this elderberry syrup and I want to make sure it is safe. Thank you so much for sharing!
I have my own elderberry trees so I grow my own and use fresh berries. The last two years have been rough getting berries since I have to fight the cat birds for them and they usually win , next year I am going to wrap netting around my trees hopefully that will help
I can’t find anywhere on here what would be an appropriate amount and how often. Adults and a 2 year old. More so the 2 year old. Didn’t want to give to much. I was thinking a 1/2 teaspoon but not sure