Limonana

The Levant's essential summer street drink: fresh lemon juice and spearmint blended with ice into a frothy, frozen slush that lands somewhere between a lemonade and a sorbet

Origin: Lebanon, Israel & the Levant

From the journey of Mint.

Limonana (ليمونانا) is a portmanteau of limon (lemon) and nana (spearmint): the drink's two structural ingredients and, in a sense, the whole of its recipe. It is the defining street drink of the Levant: sold from carts and juice stands across Lebanon, Israel, Palestine, and Jordan, consumed in vast quantities from spring through autumn, and so inseparably associated with summer in the eastern Mediterranean that the smell of fresh spearmint blended with lemon is a Proustian trigger for anyone who grew up in the region. The drink exists on a spectrum from fresh-squeezed mint lemonade (cold but not frozen) to a completely frozen slush closer to granita, with most Levantine versions falling somewhere in between, iced and slushy, frothy from the blending, vibrantly green from the spearmint. The modern preparation is made in a blender with crushed ice; pre-blender versions were made by pounding mint with lemon and sugar in a mortar, a technique that emphasises the herb's aromatic oils in exactly the way a blender achieves mechanically. The drink's apparent simplicity, lemon, mint, sugar, ice, conceals the fact that the proportions are critical: too little mint and it is merely lemonade; too much mint without enough lemon and it tastes medicinal; the right balance is bright, bracingly cold, and intensely refreshing.

Ingredients

citrus

3 lemons, juice only (approximately 90ml)

mint

1 large handful fresh spearmint (nana) leaves, packed, approximately 20g; stems removed

sweetener

2 tbsp caster (superfine) sugar, or to taste, or 2 tbsp simple syrup

ice

300 g crushed ice or ice cubes

liquid

50 ml cold water

garnish

2 sprigs fresh spearmint, for garnish

Method

Combine the lemon juice, fresh mint leaves, sugar (or simple syrup), cold water, and ice in a blender. Blend on high speed for 30-45 seconds until completely smooth and frothy; the mint should be fully puréed and the ice fully crushed.
Taste before pouring. Adjust sugar (more if too sharp), lemon (more if too flat), or mint (though difficult to add more once blended; add a small handful and re-blend). The drink should be intensely refreshing; bright and lemony, clearly minty but not medicinal.
Pour immediately into chilled glasses. The texture should be between a slushy and a thick smoothie. Garnish with a sprig of fresh spearmint. Serve immediately; it will separate and melt quickly.

Notes

This recipe uses spearmint (Mentha spicata / nana) specifically; the standard Levantine mint. Peppermint would create an entirely different and overpowering drink. Some Levantine versions add a small amount of rose water for fragrance; a few drops is enough. For a more intensely frozen version closer to a sorbet, increase the ice and reduce the water. Sugar quantity depends entirely on the sweetness of your lemons.

The Gastrographer

Name: Limonana
Prep time: 10 min
Total time: 10 min
Yield: 2
Cuisine: Israel & the Levant
Ingredients: 3 lemons, juice only (approximately 90ml); 1 large handful fresh spearmint (nana) leaves, packed, approximately 20g; stems removed; 2 tbsp caster (superfine) sugar, or to taste, or 2 tbsp simple syrup; 300 g crushed ice or ice cubes; 50 ml cold water; 2 sprigs fresh spearmint, for garnish

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Journey Point Map Key

Ingredient originTrade or transit route

Became a culinary stapleColonial / trade control