Nettle Cordial

Though nettle season has finished up for summer, here is a recipe for next year. And so I will remember it. I made it for Punch and Fable’s Painting Poetry Exhibition in Cork city last month with nettles foraged from the back of the house here in Limerick. The intention was to bring some of the wild to the city. It went down a treat with sparkling water - so refreshing and grounding. I’ve been weeding a lot in the garden recently and I’m so impressed when I come across nettles - their roots run so so deep. No wonder it feels so grounding. Rough recipe below that made 3 and a half 750ml bottles. Though worth bearing in mind that you can’t go too far wrong with sugar, water and nettles. Enjoy.  

Ingredients:

300g nettles

750ml filtered water

1.5kg sugar

100 ml lemon juice

Method:

Pick the youngest nettle leaves you can find, found at the top of the plant in early spring (and remember to wear gloves!)

Wash the nettles and leave to drain.  

In a large saucepan over a medium heat, put in the filtered water and sugar. Stir to dissolve the sugar. Once dissolved turn off the heat, add in the lemon juice and stir. Next add the nettles and give another good stir. 

Leave to sit for 2 days (some recipes say 1 week but I found that this was sufficient), stirring a few times. 

After 2 days, using a sieve and funnel, strain and pour into bottles. 

Add sparkling water to taste. 

This keeps for about a month in the fridge.