Roselle juice facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Roselle juice

Bottles of sobolo
Alternative names	Bissap, sobolo, sorrel
Serving temperature	Cold
Main ingredients	Roselle flowers, water, sugar
Variations	Ginger

Roselle juice is a super popular and tasty drink! It's known by many names around the world, like bissap in parts of Africa, sorrel in the Caribbean, and agua de Jamaica in Mexico. This vibrant drink is made from the beautiful flowers of the Roselle plant, which is a type of Hibiscus. Even though we call it "juice," it's actually more like a special tea. It's usually sweetened and served cold, but you can also enjoy it warm, especially as hibiscus tea.

What is Roselle Juice?

Roselle juice is a cool, refreshing drink. You'll find it in many countries, especially in West Africa and the Caribbean. It has a deep red-purple color that looks really cool. In places like Burkina Faso, Senegal, and Ivory Coast, people call it bissap. But in Ghana and Nigeria, it's known as sobolo or zobo.

This drink tastes a bit like grapes and cranberries. You can make it even more delicious by adding things like mint leaves. Some people like to mix in orange, ginger, or pineapple juice. You can also add vanilla or other flavors you enjoy! While it's often served cold in many countries, in Egypt, people sometimes drink it warm.

How to Make Roselle Juice

Making roselle juice is pretty simple! You'll need water, roselle (or bissap) flowers, and sugar. You can also add other flavors like ginger.

Here are the basic steps:

• Wash your roselle flowers very well in clean water.
• You can either pour boiling water over the flowers, or put them in water and let them boil. Another way is to soak them in water overnight.
• If you're adding tea grass, you can boil it together with the flowers.
• If you used the boiling method, take the pot off the heat.
• Use a strainer to separate the flowers from the flavored water.
• Add sugar to make it sweet, just how you like it! (You might not need much sugar if you're adding sweet pineapple juice later).
• Let the juice cool down if it's still hot.
• Now you can add other ingredients like pineapple juice.
• Once it's cool, put it in the fridge. Serve it chilled and enjoy!

Zobo Drink in Nigeria

Dried hibiscus leaves ready for making zobo

Zobo drink is a very popular local drink in Nigeria. It's made from dried hibiscus leaves and other yummy ingredients. You can find zobo all over Nigeria, from big restaurants to small shops. It's often served at parties and is a favorite family drink.

Making Zobo Drink

To make zobo, people boil hibiscus leaves with ginger and sometimes garlic for about an hour. It can be served hot or cold, depending on the weather. Other ingredients that make zobo special include nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, and lime. After boiling, the mixture is strained to get the clear zobo juice. Zobo drink has a taste similar to cranberry juice and is a beautiful ruby red color.

Zobo drinks are often put into clean bottles and sealed. This helps keep them fresh and tasty for longer.

The Main Ingredient: Hibiscus Sabdariffa

The most important part of zobo drink is a plant called Hibiscus sabdariffa. This plant is also known as Roselle. It's an annual herb, which means it grows for one season. You can plant it almost any time of the year, but it grows especially well between November and April.

Hibiscus sabdariffa has other common names too, like spinach dock, sour grass, or sour grabs.

Other Names for Zobo

Because zobo drink comes from hibiscus leaves, it's also known as hibiscus tea, hibiscus drink, or Roselle drink. Sometimes, people call it "local Chapman" because other fruits and colors are added to it, just like in a traditional Chapman drink. Since zobo can have a slightly sour taste, it's also sometimes called sour tea.

Other Popular Nigerian Drinks

Besides zobo, there are other cool local drinks in Nigeria that people love. These include Kunu, which is made from Millet, and refreshing tiger nut drink, and ginger drink.

Keeping Zobo Fresh

There are ways to keep zobo tea fresh for a longer time. Some natural things like nutmeg, lime, and cloves can help keep the drink fresh.

Sometimes, people use small amounts of special ingredients like sodium benzoate or a mix of citric acid and magnesium sulfate. These are chemical compounds that help preserve the drink. To keep the natural sour taste of the hibiscus leaf, fruit juice is often added when these preservatives are used.

Images for kids

• 

  Bottles of sobolo

• 

  Dried hibiscus leaves ready for making zobo