Rajasthani Gulaab Phool Sharbat Rose Water Drink

Method

1. 1

   Wash rose petals: If using fresh rose petals, wash them gently in cold water. Shake off excess moisture. Choose petals from fragrant, unsprayed roses — the fragrance is the point.

2. 2

   Make the rose petal syrup: Combine 1 cup sugar and 1 cup water in a pot. Heat stirring until sugar dissolves. Add the rose petals. Simmer on low heat for 5 minutes. The syrup will take on a pale pink colour and deep rose fragrance.

3. 3

   Cool the syrup: Remove from heat. Let the rose petals steep in the cooling syrup for 10 minutes. The longer they steep, the more intensely fragrant the syrup.

4. 4

   Strain: Pour through a fine strainer. Press the rose petals to extract all the fragrant syrup. Discard the petals.

5. 5

   Add rose water: Add 1/2 tsp rose water (ruh gulab) to the strained syrup. Stir. The ruh gulab is a concentrated distilled rose water — it intensifies the rose fragrance of the syrup.

6. 6

   Taste the syrup: It should smell deeply and purely of rose, taste sweet and floral. If the fragrance is not strong enough, steep the syrup with additional fresh rose petals for 5 more minutes.

7. 7

   Fill glasses with ice: Add 4 to 5 ice cubes to each glass.

8. 8

   Add syrup: Add 3 to 4 tablespoons of rose syrup to each ice-filled glass.

9. 9

   Add cold water: Fill the glass with cold water. Stir gently.

10. 10

    Serve immediately: The gulaab sharbat should be fragrant, cold and pale pink. Garnish with one fresh rose petal if available.

11. 11

    Note: Gulaab (rose) cultivation in Rajasthan — particularly in Pushkar (Ajmer district) and the Haldighati area (Rajsamand district) — produces the fragrant roses used for making ruh gulab (distilled rose water). Pushkar is one of India's most important pilgrimage sites and its markets are famous for rose-based products. The Pushkar camel fair, held annually in November, has stalls selling gulaab sharbat by the litre to hundreds of thousands of visitors.