Strawberry Basil Lemonade

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This strawberry basil lemonade is the thirst-quencher you’ll crave all summer long. The sweet and tart combination of strawberries and lemons is made only more refreshing by the fresh basil infused in the lemonade.

cup of lemonade with slice of lemon on side.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

Our easy lemonade is made with fresh lemon juice, water, and a strawberry basil syrup. If you’ve ever had the strawberry basil lemonade from Red Robin or the Hard Rock Café, now you can make it home!

You’ll love how fresh this lemonade tastes and how easy it is to customize to your own personal preferences. I love the fresh basil infused in this drink, it really adds just a pop of freshness.

Try making this strawberry basil syrup from this recipe to use in cocktails, mocktails, or to add to sodas! You’re going to love it.

Ingredient Notes

Strawberries. Fresh strawberries are best in this lemonade recipe. You can use frozen strawberries, just thaw them out first.
Basil. Fresh basil is a necessity, do not use dried basil. There are lots of different kinds of basil, I used sweet basil, which has the best flavor for this recipe.
Sugar. We’re using white, granulated sugar.
Water. Flat water is great for a classic lemonade. If you want a fizzy, carbonated lemonade you can add sparkling water at the end with the lemon juice.
Lemons. We use lemon juice and lemon zest in this lemonade recipe. Use freshly squeezed lemon juice, do not use bottled lemon juice. Lemon zest is added to the strawberry basil syrup and really brightens the flavors.

How to Make this Recipe

How to Make Strawberry Basil Syrup

two images showing how to puree ingredients for syrup.

Puree. Take your washed and dried strawberry halves and basil and place in a blender or food processor with sugar, lemon zest, and water. Puree until as smooth as possible.

Boil. Tip the pureed mixture into a small sauce pan. Turn on to medium heat and bring to a boil for 2 minutes. By boiling the mixture, the sugar is completely dissolved making a simple syrup completely infused with strawberries and basil. Remove from heat and cool syrup for a few minutes.

Strain. Once cooled, press mixture through a mesh strainer. What you’re left with is a strawberry basil syrup. This syrup is infused with the strawberry and basil flavors and adds sweetness to the lemonade. This syrup is great for mixing with not only lemonades, but also cocktails, mocktails, and sodas!

Note: You can skip the straining if you don’t care about little bits in your strawberry basil lemonade. You may need add a little more lemon juice and water to balance out the extra sweetness and strawberries and basil flavors.

Making the Lemonade

Mix. Mix the strawberry basil syrup with the freshly squeezed lemon juice and water.
Chill. Chill your lemonade until super cold before serving. Add ice right before serving to keep the ice from diluting the lemonade.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQS)

What does strawberry basil lemonade taste like?

Strawberry Basil Lemonade is sweet, tangy, and has a hit of freshness from the basil.

Is basil sweet or spicy?

This depends on what kind of basil you use. I recommend using sweet basil in this recipe. Thai basil is a little sweet, spicy, and has notes of anise. While great in some recipes, it is not recommended for this basil lemonade.

Can I use frozen strawberries?

I think fresh strawberries give the best flavor. However, you can use frozen strawberries in this strawberry basil lemonade. Be sure to thaw them out before you use them.

Can I leave out the basil?

If you like, you can leave out the basil. This will leave you with a classic strawberry lemonade. Or you can swap the basil for something like mint for a strawberry basil mint lemonade.

Expert Tips

Use Fresh Lemon Juice. Fresh lemon juice will give such a better flavor than bottled. If you’re going through the effort to make homemade lemonade, use freshly squeezed lemon juice!
Add ice cubes before serving. Chill the lemonade in the fridge until you are ready to serve it. Don’t add ice cubes until right before you serve it, otherwise the ice will dilute the lemonade.
Different ways to use the strawberry basil syrup. This simple syrup is delicious in more than just this lemonade recipe! You can use the syrup to flavor cocktails, mocktails, Italian sodas, limeade, or soda.
Shortcut—Skip the Straining. Straining the chunks of strawberries and basil is not completely necessary. It makes for a smoother lemonade, which many people prefer. However, if you don’t mind little bits of strawberry and basil in your lemonade you can skip the straining. You may need to add extra lemon juice and water to account for the extra sweetness and strawberry basil flavoring added to this drink.
Save the Pulp. If you think tossing the strawberry basil pulp after straining it feels like a waste, save it! I love adding a scoop of it to plain Greek yogurt.
Adjust to your own taste. Adjust the lemonade to your personal tastes. If it’s too sweet, add a little lemon juice or water. If it’s not sweet enough add a tablespoon of sugar. if you need to up any of the flavors add sliced strawberries, or basil chiffonade, or lemon zest.

two glasses full of lemonade with full pitcher behind.

How to Garnish Your Drinks.

Garnishes are not necessary, but add a fun and pretty detail to make your drink feel extra special. Use one of these or all of them to level up your lemonade!

Sugar Rim. Pour some granulated sugar onto a plate or into a bowl large enough to fit the rim of your glass. Take a wedge of lemon and rub it along the edge of the glass so a small amount of juice is on the edge. Then dip the glass into the sugar so it sticks creating a sugar rim.
Lemon Slice or Wedge. Cut a round slice of lemon with a small slit in it to stick on the edge of the cup. Or, take a wedge of lemon and put it in the cup.
Strawberry Slices. Put a few slices of fresh strawberries in your cup or frozen strawberries in there to help keep the drink cold. You can also slice a strawberry in half and just a small slit at the tip of the strawberry and fit it over the rim of your cup.
Fresh Basil Leaves. Put a fresh sprig of basil floating at the top of the glass.

Variations of this Recipe

Make it Sparkling Lemonade. After you mix the lemon juice with the strawberry basil syrup you can replace the regular water with sparkling water for a fizzy drink!
Make it Sugar-free. If you’d like to make this drink sugar-free, you can replace the granulated sugar with a sweetener that measures like sugar, like sucralose or monk fruit sweetener.
Use a Natural Sweetener. You can also replace the sugar with a natural sweetener like honey or agave when you make the syrup. I’ve found honey can dilute flavors so you may need adjust the lemon juice to account for this. Agave has a more neutral flavor profile and is therefore preferred.
Swap the fruit. Try swapping the fruits in this recipe. You can swap the strawberries for raspberries, blackberries, or even mango. The lemon juice can be swapped for fresh lime juice to make it a strawberry basil limeade.
Swap the herbs. Try switching the basil for fresh mint or do a combination of the two to make it a strawberry basil mint lemonade.

glass of lemonade on wooden board with flower in glass.

Storage Tips

This lemonade should be stored in the fridge and is best used within 2 days of making.

Making Ahead of Time

This lemonade can be made several hours (up to 12 hours) in advance. If you are adding sparkling water, wait to add that until right before serving.

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