Pomegranate Molasses

Ok – I’m just going to say it… pomegranate molasses is amazing! And to think I just learned of it about a year ago – where have you been all of my life!My daughter and I were in a restaurant that we love and we ordered a burrata appetizer; it was on the specials list. And man-oh-man was it “special”! Out to our table can this luscious, milky ball of burrata with just a big enough slice cut in the top so you could see all of the creamy goodness peeking out ready to come your way. Honestly, I really didn’t read the description, as I was sold on the word burrata. Well…when it came to our table the burrata sat upon a glorious pool of a ruby red syrup with pomegranate arils (seeds) and crushed pistachios sprinkled about the plate. Can you guess from my description here that it was nothing short of heavenly goodness!?!

So I did what I usually do, flagged over the waiter and asked him to please ask the chef what is in this saucy/syrupy goodness! He did better than that… he gave me the entire ingredient list – score! First ingredient on the list was…just guessed it… pomegranate molasses. Later that day I went to the grocery store to get some pomegranate molasses. Denied. Went to another store. nope, never heard of it. Three more.. no luck.  What is it with this stuff??? Well it’s not all that easy to find. Kind of hit or miss and I have only seen it in specialty stores, and even then, usually only around the holidays.

How to make pomegranate molasses

Place the sugar in a medium (3-4 qts) size saucepan. I used white sugar here, but honestly only because I did not have enough cane sugar on hand, but feel free to use your sugar of choice. Then add in the lemon juice. I strained the lemon juice through a small metal, mesh strainer so I didn’t have any pulp floating around.

Then you just pour in the pomegranate juice and you are ready to go…

Now, there is another name brand pomegranate juice available in my store, but it was twice as expensive so I decided to save a few bucks. This brand was delicious…

Turn on your stove to medium high heat, stir the mixture until you feel like the sugar is dissolved, scraping the bottom to make sure.

The juice should come to a slow to medium boil, definitely not a high boil and if you just set it to a simmer is will take forever to reduce. It should look something like this when it’s cooking.

Now be patient: go watch TV, clean something, but don’t go too far. You’ll want to keep an eye on how much it’s boiling, adjust your temperature along the way if necessary. Also, give it a stir every 10 minutes or so. It will take about an hour or so to reduce all the way. Once it is completely reduced you will have out a 1/4 -1/3 of the volume that you started out with and it will have a beautifully rich, deep red color.

 

Finishing up and storing

Once the pomegranate molasses is completely reduced, remove the pot from the stove and let it cool for about a half hour.  Once cooled, pour it into a glass jar or other glass container, seal it tightly, and place in the fridge. 

Now don’t forget it’s in there after you use it just once!  Use it to make a vinaigrette salad dressing, drizzle it over some steel cut oatmeal with toasted walnuts or what about in a marinade for some yummy grilled chicken or shrimp…mmm…now that sounds delish!

Stay-tuned for a wonderful dish: Pomegranate Molasses Brussels Sprouts – AmAzInG!

BONUS: Pomegranates are a known super food packed full of nutrients and antioxidants. The History of Pomegranates is pretty interesting as well.

Drop me a line and let me know how you use pomegranate molasses in your cooking…enjoy!

❤, 👑🐝