Roselle juice

Roselle juice, known as bissap, wonjo, foléré, dabileni, tsobo, zobo, siiloo, soborodo or Sobolo in parts of Africa, sorrel in the Caribbean, and agua de Jamaica in Mexico, is a drink made out of the flowers of the roselle plant, a species of Hibiscus. Although generally the "juice" is sweetened and chilled, it is really an infusion. When it is served hot it can be called hibiscus tea.

Roselle juice

Bottles of sobolo
Alternative names	Bissap, tsobo, sobolo, sorrel
Serving temperature	Cold
Main ingredients	Roselle flowers, water, sugar
Variations	Ginger
Cookbook: Roselle juice   Media: Roselle juice

Description

Roselle juice, often taken refrigerated, is a cool drink in many West African countries and the Caribbean. It is a dark red-purple coloured juice. The Burkinabes, Senegalese, and Ivorians call it bissap. The Nigerians call it zobo. Ghanaians call it Zobolo. It tastes a bit grapey and a little like cranberry juice. It can be served with mint leaves. It can be served with other flavouring like orange essence or ginger, pineapple juice, tea grass or vanilla. In Ghana, Nigeria, and Senegal, roselle juice is served cold, while in Egypt, it is served warm.

Preparation

Roselle juice is prepared with water, bissap flowers, sugar and sometimes other flavouring ingredients such as ginger.

• Wash bissap flowers in clean water.
• Either pour boiling water over the flowers, or put flowers into water and allow to boil, or soak in water overnight.
• If mixing with tea grass, you can boil together with the leaves.
• If using boiling method, remove from fire.
• Drain with a strainer to separate flowers from flavoured water.
• Sweeten to taste with sugar (if not using pineapple juice).
• Allow to cool before adding other ingredients.
• You may add pineapple juice and other ingredients at this point.
• Allow to cool if it is still hot, then refrigerate and serve.

Health benefits

Roselle juice, which acts as a diuretic, regulates blood pressure and reduces hypertension. It also has high levels of vitamin C, so is used to treat the common cold and otherwise boost the immune system. Some studies have also shown antimicrobial activity.

Zobo drink

Dried hibiscus leaves

Zobo drink is a local drink in Nigeria. It is made from dried hibiscus leaf and other ingredients. The drink is commonly sold in restaurants and on roadsides. Zobo drinks are served at parties.

Hibiscus drink is made by boiling the hibiscus leaf with ginger and garlic for less than an hour. It is served hot or chilled depending on the weather condition of the area it was produced. Other ingredients used in making zobo drink include nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, lime and artificial colours. The particles are sieved leaving behind the zobo juice. The roselle drink has flavour similar to cranberry juice and it is ruby red in colour.

Hibiscus sabdariffa

This is the major ingredient used in making zobo drink. It is a leafy vegetable similar to spinach that originates from Europe. Hibiscus sabdariffa, also known as roselle, is an annual herb that can be planted all year round especially between November and the April of the next year. Hibiscus sabdariffa is otherwise known as spinach dock, sour grass, or sour grabs.

Other names

Zobo drink is also known as hibiscus tea, hibiscus drink and roselle drinks because the beverage drink is made from hibiscus leaves. Also it is known as local Chapman since other fruits and artificial colours are added. Due to the sour taste of zobo drink, it is refer to as sour tea as well.

Preservatives

There are two types of preservatives used in production of zobo tea, the natural ones are nutmeg, lime and cloves . Sodium benzoate at a concentration of 0.1% or mixture of citric acid and magnesium sulfate are the chemical compounds used in preserving zobo drink for a longer time and make it carbon-free. The artificial preservatives are neutralized with fruit juice in order to conserve the sour taste of the leaf during production.

Related pages

• Hibiscus

Other websites

• Video: How to make Sobolo