Big Batch Sugar Syrup
Sugar syrup perfect for sweetening and flavoring your favorite Middle Eastern and Mediterranean desserts. This recipe makes a large amount enough for drizzling and soaking multiple dishes. Two special ingredients make it last months and months without ever crystallizing, making it ideal for long storage! Plus…recipe VIDEO included!
If there’s one thing Middle Eastern desserts is famous for, is that it LOVES sugar syrup. Its the mother sauce of the sweet Arabic cuisine, an indispensable addition and the main contributor to its delightfully sticky identity.
On their own, iconic Middle Eastern desserts are barely sweet, making their dependance on a generous drench of syrup to both sweeten and flavor them, a necessity.
From Kunafa, Baklava and Qatayef to Balah El Sham, Zalabya and Halawet El Jibn, they all call for a heavy helping of sugar syrup to transform them from savory to pastry.
This type of syrup is sweeter and thicker than simple syrup, so it enrobes the food rather than wets it, preserving the pastry’s unique texture. It’s also a great carrier of flavor, which perfumes the dessert with whatever flavor its infused with.
Making this kind of syrup is pretty simple, and typically uses only 3 everyday ingredients: sugar, water and lemon juice. As great as it is to use right away, the problem with this formula is that it doesn’t have the best shelf life. Due to its large ratio of sugar to water, it has the tendency to crystallize and become gritty if stored for longer than a few of days; basically ruined syrup! This means that a new batch needs to be freshly prepared with each and every time a dessert that requires some is made.
I have recipes that need as little as 3 tablespoons syrup & so many that require a scant 1/2 cup. Who would want to dirty a pot for that! Not to mention those impromptu desserts that come together so much faster than it takes for the syrup to cool. Wouldn’t it be a shame to get held down just because you’re waiting for the syrup to cool down?!
So if you’re like me and regularly make Middle Eastern desserts year round, you’ll find this mundane step a very annoying one, especially that sufficient time is usually needed to allow the syrup to cool completely before using.
This is particularly inconvenient during the month of Ramadan, when Middle Eastern desserts are an everyday event in most Arab homes.
This is where the great Big Batch Sugar Syrup recipe comes to the rescue!
Not only does it make a very large amount to use over several desserts, but the real beauty of this recipe lies in the fact that it keeps well forever without ever developing a single crystal. Forever, as in months and months and months at room temperature.
Simply put…if you make Middle Eastern desserts, even if as little as once a month, you need a trusty bottle of syrup hanging around to use by the drop or pour by the pint. In Ramadan on the other hand, it will be your life saver.
Unlike common recipes for syrup where you need to be extra careful not to over stir while cooking, or you’ll risk developing crystals, this recipe is practically foolproof. So stir all you need, because nothing’s gonna happen to this one.
It’s literally a dump and stir recipe, that requires minimal attention. See?
A little over a kilo of sugar gets dumped in a pot, and covered with a 1 liter bottle of water. Previously, I used to make this recipe with exactly a 1 kilo bag of sugar and 1 liter of water, which was very convenient, but felt like it could get a bit thicker. So adding an extra 2 1/2 cups (500 grams) of sugar to the existing kilo, proved to produce the perfect consistency.
You’re gonna want to stir everything over high heat to dissolve the sugar, then leave to boil for 5 minutes.
After that, 2 special ingredient get added in, which are the secret for that magical preservation of the syrup.
The first one is: Glucose Syrup.
Glucose is basically an invert sugar that looks like corn syrup, but much thicker and a lot less sweeter. Think of it as sugar in liquid form. Its purpose here is to prevent the chance of crystallization and increase the syrup’s shelf life. It is this backbone of this particular recipe and the star of its success, so don’t skip it. It can be easily found on Amazon, but I get it from a popular confectioners’ specialty store here in Cairo called Darb El Barabra.
As for special ingredient number 2, it’s Lemon Salt; aka Citric Acid.
Lemon Salt is a natural preservative and a flavor contributor. Its tart taste cuts through the sweetness of all the added sugar, without imparting lemon flavor, making it the perfect blank canvas for any flavorings of your choice. It also doesn’t add unwanted liquid to the syrup, which may thin it down, the way lemon juice does. It can be easily found along with the spices in most supermarkets.
Speaking of blank canvas…this syrup is all yours to customize. So go crazy with the flavors you love the most!
Popular flavor infusers include, rose and orange blossom water, which can be used separately or together. Spices like cinnamon, cardamom, cloves and peppercorns are also amazing here, and go swimming well with baklava! And who doesn’t love vanilla? It’s probably the most agreed on flavor in the world. Use it in the form of beans, if you’re up for the splurge, or cut back on the expenses and add vanilla extract or powder instead. If you love citrus, throw in an orange or lemon peel while the syrup is cooking. Another common yet pricey flavoring is saffron! This thing gives the syrup the most gorgeous yellow tinge while hitting it with the exotic taste its known for.
And then you’re all ready to use it for any recipe that calls for sugar syrup…which the exception of basbousa, but we’ll get to that later.
Bottled up and labeled like I did here, would turn it into the nicest gift.
You’d think that this is how I store my syrup, but oh nooooo….this is how I do it ?
Ramadan is in a couple of days…so hurry! Make a batch of this today! And stay tuned for 13 Middle Eastern dessert recipes coming your way within the next month. More than half of which calls for syrup ?
Big Batch Sugar Syrup

Sugar syrup perfect for sweetening and flavoring your favorite Middle Eastern and Mediterranean desserts. This recipe makes a large amount enough for drizzling and soaking multiple dishes. Two special ingredients make it last months and months without ever crystallizing, making it ideal for long storage!
Ingredients
- 1½ kg (7½ cups) granulated sugar
- 1 liter water
- ⅛ teaspoon lemon salt (also known as citric acid)
- 1 (700g) jar glucose syrup (*see note)
Options for flavoring the syrup: (use 1, a combination of few or nothing at all. Adjust amount according to taste)
- 2 tablespoons rose water
- 2 tablespoons orange blossom water
- 2 to 4 cinnamon sticks
- 5 to 10 whole cloves
- 10 to 20 peppercorns
- 1 large pinch saffron
- 5 to 10 cardamon pods, lightly smashed open
- 1 vanilla bean, sliced lengthwise & seeds scraped
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 2 to 3 packets vanilla sugar powder
- Peel of 1 orange
- Peel of 1 large lemon or 2 to 3 small lemons
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
Instructions
- In a large pot, over high heat, place in the sugar and cover with water. Add in your flavoring of choice, except if using rose and/ or orange blossom water, vanilla extract or vanilla powder; these are best added in the end. Stir continuously until the sugar is dissolved, then bring to a boil. Allow the mixture to boil from 5 minutes.
- Stir in the lemon salt and glucose while bringing the mixture back to a boil. Boil for another 3 minutes, then remove from over the heat. If using rose and/or orange blossom water, vanilla extract or vanilla powder, this is the time to add them in.
- Allow the syrup to cool completely (with the flavorings in). Pour the cooled syrup into bottles or containers, removing any added flavorings. Store at room temperature for several months.
Recipe Notes
- Glucose syrup can be found online, however I purchase mine from a popular confectioners' specialty store here in Cairo called Darb El Barabra. The jar says that it contains 700 grams but what comes out of it, given that its very sticky, is around 650 grams.
- Recipe can be doubled, tripled, or quadrupled according to your needs.
Measurements Note: All recipes of this site have been developed using weight measurements. Although US volume measurements have been included for your convenience, it is highly encouraged that you weigh your ingredients using a kitchen scale to get the best possible results. Due to the sensitive nature of baking, kitchen scales are proven to yield more accurate and consistent results than measuring cups. Enjoy!
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YAAAAAAYYYYY !!!
I’M SO HYPED WHEN I RECEIVED THE NOTIFICATION FOR THE NEW POST .
Made these a couple of weeks ago when you posted them on Instagram
and they filled like A LOT of bottles . *let’s hope it doesn’t crystallise because i’m the one who will be cleaning them*
kinda wished it to be a a thick syrup because they tend to not sag the “kunnaffah” .
Can’t wait for the rest of the recipes to come out .
I’m so excited too Basmmallah! I can’t wait to share everything I’ve been working on the past 2 months! Actually I did improve a bit on the recipe I posted on Instagram, as I felt it could use some extra body. Even though I never had a problem with the thinner one sogging my Kunafas, I’m liking the consistency of this one more. You could still fix the one you made by emptying it in a pot & adding 2 1/2 cups (500g) of sugar to it, while reheating it till the sugar dissolves. Boil for a minute or 2 & voila!
Hi, can I use this on cake to keep it moist?
Hi Asha! I wouldn’t recommend this for soaking cakes because it’s consistency is very heavy like corn syrup. For simple syrup, it’s best to use a 1:1 ratio of sugar to water.
How do you package it and store your Sugar Syrup? And where did you get the beautiful bottles and labels? I love them they are so pretty. Do you keep this in the refrigerator if so how long will it keep in a large big batch such as this? Thanks for all your wonderful recipes I have been looking for the perfect cheesecake for my grand daughter she wants that for her birthday and your 3rd birthday cheesecake with all the meringue kisses will be perfect and of course she said it has to be strawberry so this was the perfect cheesecake for the end of this month for her it looks festive and not plain for a birthday. And so many things I can do ahead of the day of. Thanks again.
Hi Debbie! After the syrup gets bottled up, it can be stored at room temperature with no worries of it going bad.
Thanks for the compliments on the bottles! Some of them are actually from ikea & the jar one is a jam jar that I’ve cleaned up really well ? As for the ‘Sugar Syrup’ labels, I’ve designed those & will soon add a printable link to the post. The ‘enjoy’ & ‘sugar is my favorite’ are stickers that I’ve purchased from Michaels Canada.
Happy birthday to your grand daughter in advance…wishing her a lifetime of happiness. The cheesecake would be perfect for the occasion. I hope you love it as much as we do ?
Hi Tasbih, where do you get lemon salt in cairo? And please consider this Ramadan posting a Basbousa recipe ?
Hi Marwa! Lemon salt can easily be found at most supermarkets next to the spices. Basbousa is all tested and photographed and is ready to go LIVE on the blog on Wednesday, May the 23rd! Can’t wait to share this one…it’s been a long time in the works.
Salaam Tasbih, I am going to take on the very tedious challenge of making your mini sweet samosas soon. Can’t I just use the syrup that you have under your konafa recipe? Do I really need glucose syrup?!! Or can your other recipe work? Ramadan Mubarak
Salaams Iram! Hats off to you for taking that very brave step lol! Ofcourse you can use the konafa syrup or any 2:1 sugar to water ratio syrup you prefer. As a matter of fact, the syrup for the mini samosas call for a syrup that doesn’t contain any glucose. The purpose of this particular syrup recipe, is convenient storage. The idea behind it is that makes a really large amount to last you many dishes over a long period of time. Regular syrups that don’t contain glucose are perfectly fine, but don’t store well as they tend crystallize after a few days. But if you’re gonna use it the same day you make it, or within a few days, then it a good, solid recipe. Here’s the link to the mini samosas so you can check out its glucose-free syrup:
https://cleobuttera.com/middle-eastern/mini-cream-cheese-sweet-samosas-samboosak/
Hi love the recipe. Could you please define the life of the syrup slightly better for me. Months and months and months? Are we talking 9? Also is that at a particular temperature or just in a fridge? Would it work outside a fridge?
Thank you Tom! I store mine at room temperature without any issues. Regarding its shelf life…Yes! We’re talking 9 months, if not more! I recently used a batch that I’ve had for 10 months and not gonna lie, I was hesitant to use it, but it surprising tasted as good as new, and I lived to tell the story ? I’ve never had some that lasted longer, so I can’t know for sure it’s exact shelf life, but I can vouch for at least 10 months, because it’s the longest I’ve tried.
Hey got another question. Could I replace glucose syrup with my home made inverted sugar? Since it contains glucose and fructose
With pleasure Tom. I’m honestly unsure though, as I’ve never tried anything other than glucose for this recipe. But according to the ingredients you mentioned, it sounds like it might just work. Please let us know how it goes, if you give it a try.
Hello Tasbih,
I don’t want to make “the big batch” of the syrup as I don’t make desserts that often (never actually) lol. But I want to try to make ur basbousa recipe 😀 So, could you please write down The exact measures for a single use from this syrup?
Thanks in advance dear 🙂
Hi Sara! If you just need enough syrup for the basbousa, just follow the amounts listed under ‘for the heavy syrup’ which is 70g sugar and 40g water, etc.
Sorry another question, I can’t find the glucose or the lemon salt as I don’t live in Egypt and I can’t find these 2 ingredients in the supermarkets here, so is it possible to make it without these 2?
Yes of course you can. These 2 ingredients are just there to increase the shelf life of the syrup so it can stay for months without crystallizing. But since you don’t need that much, you simply don’t need them. Just follow the syrup in this recipe instead.
you have great contents and amazing pictures. It was fun reading your contents. Join us at Living Faith Bible Church 2019 Shiloh Breaking Limits this year. You can live stream from their official website or from you tube.
Can i use corn syrup instead of glucose syrup ?
Hi Hanan! Corn syrup is sweeter and has a thinner consistency than glucose syrup. So while it will definitely work, because it will serve the purpose of preventing crystallization from happening, I wouldn’t add the same amount as glucose, as that would make it too sweet. Start by using half the amount called for, taste it then adjust the amount according to the sweetness of your liking.
Enjoy ?
Thank you very much indeed for solving this mystery of syrupmaking. May God bless you. I suppose i can use it to make peanut brittles too with modification.
Greetings
Sally
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