So we know that Sour Plum Drink doesn’t exactly sound very good, but it happens to be the commonly used translation of a popular Chinese drink known as suan mei tang (酸梅汤) in Chinese. (While an awkward Chinese translation never gets old, we prefer to call this drink Sour Plum Tea!)
What Is This Sour Plum Drink?
So what is Sour Plum Tea? Before any commercial beverage companies made their way into China, this centuries old drink was, and still is in most Chinese people’s minds, the ultimate thirst quencher, especially in the heat of the summer! The color is a deep magenta and, despite the name, is deliciously refreshing!
When I was young, air-conditioning was non-existent. When your palm-leaf fan stopped being effective is when you knew it was time to cool down internally. I remember the three common remedies were watermelon, mung bean soup (绿豆汤), and this sour plum drink.
I can’t say I had this sour plum drink that many times, but I do remember that a bottle of it was very precious, and we would dilute it with water or ice water so we could share it among more people. I had the fondest memories of this sweet, tart, and refreshing sour plum drink, even with the added water.
Unfortunately, this post also brought back the not-so-fond memories of waiting in long lines under the scorching sun for some iced water. Back in those days, our lives were much harder! No refrigerators in the house.
So what makes up this fruity and refreshing Sour Plum Drink? I have seen recipes that call for any combination of the following dried ingredients: sour plums (乌梅), hawthorn berries (山楂片), dried orange peel (陈皮), licorice root (甘草), dried hibiscus flowers (洛神花), and rock sugar (冰糖).
But dried sour plums and hawthorn berries are the two key ingredients. Don’t try to substitute or eliminate them in this recipe!
Beyond those 2 ingredients, though, feel free to mix and match based on your own tastes. If you stay in the range listed in the recipe, you really can’t go wrong.
If it is too strong, you can always dilute it with ice and water. Traditional sour plum drink also calls for osmanthus, a sweet fragrant flower that comes in the form of dried flowers, syrup, and wine. It’s most often used in drinks, sweets, and braised meat dishes.
Bonus Medicinal Properties?
Suan Mei Tang is considered by some to be a medicinal drink, kind of like today’s fresh pressed juices. All of the ingredients are natural and meant to cleanse and calm your insides, expel heat and quench thirst.
It’s good for the whole family, and is thought to be effective in fighting “heat-related” ailments according to traditional Chinese medicine. Even young people know to order Sour Plum Drinks when eating hot pot and spicy foods.
But the traditional recipe can be overpowering and even have a bit of a medicinal taste if you’re not careful, so I adjusted the recipe to be a bit more “user friendly.”
But seriously, isn’t the color of this tea so pretty and refreshing? I know you will enjoy it!
Suan Mei Tang Recipe Instructions
Rinse all the dried ingredients under running water to get rid of any dirt or debris. In a large pot, combine the water and the dried ingredients (if you like, you can wrap all the dried ingredients in a cheesecloth to avoid the straining step later), and soak for 1 hour.
After soaking, bring everything to a boil, and immediately turn the heat down to low. Simmer (with the lid on) for 45 minutes. Add the rock sugar, let it dissolve completely, and turn off the heat to let the liquid cool.
Once cooled, strain the liquid into a large container, and serve over ice.
Remember to store the leftovers in the refrigerator; it will last for 3-4 days. You’ll know that the drink has gone bad if there are air bubbles floating on top and the liquid is opaque instead of clear!
Sour Plum Drink (Suan Mei Tang - 酸梅汤)
Ingredients
- 2500 ml water (about 10 cups)
- 50-100 grams dried hawthorn (山楂片)
- 30-100 grams dried sour plum (乌梅)
- 3-10 grams dried orange peel (陈皮)
- 3-10 grams dried licorice root (干草)
- 10-20 grams dried hibiscus flower/tea (洛神花)
- 1-3 grams dried osmanthus flower (optional)
- 100 grams rock sugar (or to taste)
Instructions
- Rinse all the dried ingredients under running water to get rid of any dirt or debris. In a large pot, combine the water and the dried ingredients (if you like, you can wrap all the dried ingredients in a cheesecloth to avoid the straining step later), and soak for 1 hour.
- After soaking, bring everything to a boil, and immediately turn the heat down to low. Simmer (with the lid on) for 45 minutes. Add the rock sugar, let it dissolve completely, and turn off the heat to let the liquid cool.
- Once cooled, strain the liquid into a large container, and serve over ice. Remember to store the leftovers in the refrigerator; it will last for 3-4 days. You’ll know that the drink has gone bad if there are air bubbles floating on top and the liquid is opaque instead of clear!
Hi! What does soaking the dried ingredients first do? Will the flavor still be good if I omit that step and just rinse & boil?
Sure, Jess, you can skip it, but do keep everything soaking longer after it’s done boiling for maximum flavor.
Is the sour plum the same thing as omboshi? I have omboshi paste. I was wondering if I could use it in a tea like this.
Hi Nancy, I think umeboshi are sour and salted, and this drink is sweet. You certainly can use it if it’s not salty, since there are many kinds of umeboshi.
Hi Judy, could I use fresh hawthorn berries ? Thanks
Yes, you can.
Like a few commenters, I’m having a hard time finding dried plums that aren’t the Hawaiian crack seed snack, or li ming hui. Is that an acceptable substitute? I’ve searched all over internet and local stores in the Bay Area and can’t find what you are describing!
Hi Annebelle, call around Chinese herb stores for “suan mei” for “suan mei tang.” They all have it.
Hi Judy,
I so love this blog and have successfully made several dishes from your family’s archives — thank you all for sharing them with us!
This post drove me to 3 Chinese supermarkets in my area (Great Wall, 99 Ranch and NY Mart), as well as HMart and Lotte Plaza (Korean chains) in search of the dried plums pictured in your article. No luck. I tried the method of matching the Chinese characters in the photo with the products on the shelf — that has helped many times, especially with sand ginger!
The closest I found was called Qiao Dark Plums — they are preserved with salt and sugar (but no flavorings) and come in a plastic tub. They look slightly moist, like Japanese umeboshi, but are black and wrinkled. Are these similar to the ones in your drink? Can I use them to make suan mei tang? If not, I’ll wait to go to the herbalist, but the closest to us is an hour away (sadness).
Hi Manju, I believe they are different. Have a close look at what they look like: https://www.google.com/search?q=%E4%B9%8C%E6%A2%85&rlz=1C5CHFA_enUS725US740&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiIzf3X_7bgAhXNt1kKHRQQCvEQ_AUIDigB&biw=1176&bih=715#imgrc=bNDcTs6cAax-rM:
Hi Judy, Australia calling here, I found it all except the dried plums. Plenty of preserved plums, all salted though. Are your dried plums salted?
Hi Lisa, I think the salted/sugared plums that you found are more of a snack. Please show the photo of the sour plums in this post to the workers at the Asian store that you go to. Like Teri said, some large Asian supermarkets carry it, but you definitely should be able to find them in a Chinese herbal/ginseng store.
So delicious! I just finished my first attempt.
It took awhile to find all the ingredients. I started with Ranch 99, the “big Asian grocery mega-store,” but they didn’t have a lot of the ingredients, including the dried plums. I found most of what I needed at a Chinese herbal/ginseng store. The osmanthus flowers were very expensive ($8 for 2 oz) and they were very hard to strain out. Next time I’ll leave them out.
I made the recipe using the maximum grams in all the ranges and included the hibiscus and osmanthus flowers (I only used 1 oz osmanthus). The hibiscus added a lovely red color to the otherwise rather purple drink. I added an additional cup of water (I probably could have added 2 cups) and added an additional 50 grams of rock sugar. It was tart but so good!
Any ideas what else I can do with the 1 oz dried osmanthus flowers that I have left? Also, I actually have three osmanthus bushes (otherwise known as Sweet Olive trees) and the flowers are wonderfully fragrant. Any ideas how I could harvest the tiny flowers?
I was about to head to my nearest Ranchmart 99 when your timely post saved me the trip!
Now I need to locate a Chinese Herbalist. That should not be difficult in the SGV. I’ll post my experiences.
N.B. Multiple layers of cheesecloth lining a strainer will collect all but the finest particles. If I am intent on a perfectly clear solvent I make a final pass through a paper coffee filter – and that can take a while (I use my Chemex Coffee Carafe to filter water-based solvents.).
I was looking into going to Ranch 99. Weird that they didn’t even have the dried plums :/
For anyone else who may read this, I went to H-Mart and found the dried plums, but not the dried hawthorn :c
Thank you for the shopping tip, Valerie. Dried hawthorne is very common–almost all Asian markets have it.
Hi Teri, for the leftover dried osmanthus flowers, you should put them away and use them to make this drink again. All you have to do is tie them in a double layered cheese cloth beforehand. I can also think of a few other ways to use them up: 1) grind them to powder and add them to cake batters. 2) add them to jams or jellies. 3) Add them to fruity teas. As to harvesting, you might want to check Google and see what you can find. I am pretty sure you just collect the little yellow flowers and dry them under the sun until they are crunchy to the touch.
Drink with dried plum is classic! It’s elegant and beautiful! Cheers~ ?
– Natalie Ellis
It truly is, Natalie.
There was a Chinese restaurant that made this all year long near me. I had it so many times! I looooved it. They have closed down and I miss my Sour Plum drink! This is an amazing drink! Well worth the trouble!
I think the one I had didn’t have licorice or any of those other dried fruit. I think it was mostly sour plum. It was a deep almost purple black color! I’m going to try this!
Hi Pamela, this version I made is on the light side, which I like. Notice the range for each ingredient I’ve included in the recipe? It sounds like you want to stay on the higher end to get that deep purple black color :-)
I absolutely LOVE,LOVE, LOVE your blog. I can’t say more. It brings me back to my childhood. Thank you so much for sharing!
Hope your childhood was better than mine :-)