Brighten up all your favorite drinks and desserts with my deliciously real Strawberry Purée recipe. This fresh strawberry sauce is simply made with just 2 ingredients and only a few minutes of active work, but it looks and tastes like a fruity dream!
Just a few weeks ago, Calvin and I were invited to a dinner party where I—the classically trained pastry chef—was in charge of dessert. While I’d typically go for a summery showstopper like my spumoni brownie ice cream cake or strawberry short cake angel food cake, my busy (bordering on maniacal) work week prohibited it.
Luckily, I had a bunch of fresh strawberries on hand from the farmer’s market and a fresh carton of vanilla ice cream in the freezer. My path was clear—I’d make this effortless strawberry purée, bring some sparkly sugared berries, and serve berrylicious ice cream sundaes. It was perfect!
One of my favorite ways to capture the essence of strawberry season is by whipping up a batch of homemade strawberry puree. Whether you're using a food processor or an immersion blender, this easy strawberry puree recipe is the perfect way to make the most of those vibrant, whole strawberries.
If you ever find yourself in a similar bind, keep it simple and go semi-homemde! Homemade sauces and syrups are an easy, prep-ahead-friendly way to gussy up store-bought treats. Fruit is always welcome—this strawberry purée sauce, strawberry coulis, or cherry compote are universal crowd-pleasers.
⭐ Why You’ll Love This Fresh Strawberry Purée Recipe
- Only 2 Ingredients - Fresh or frozen berries and a fresh lemon are all you need to create this gorgeous, ruby-red sauce. As such, it is naturally vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, soy-free, nut-free, and added sugar-free—so just about everyone can get in on the fun!
- Quick & Simple - Give your fruit a simmer, strain it of seeds, and stir in your lemon juice. All in, you’re looking at just 15 minutes—and most of that is just waiting patiently for the strawberries to do their thing on the stove!
- Super Versatile - Use this strawberry puree for cocktails, drizzling on cakes, pies, pudding, and frozen treats, flavoring frosting, layering on pavlovas, and SO MUCH MORE.
🍴Ingredients
- Strawberries - Feel free to use either fresh or frozen berries depending on the season. While you can technically get fresh ones all year round, they’re cheapest and most delicious in the spring and early summer. Outside of that time, frozen are usually your best bet!
- Lemon Juice - Fresh is always best, especially when it comes to lemon and lime juice. To get the most out of your fruit, zest it first, then roll firmly on the countertop for 10-15 seconds before slicing open to release as much juice as possible. Also, note that you can easily freeze whole lemons or limes; doing so both extends their shelf life and makes them very easy to juice!
See the recipe card below for a full list of ingredients and measurements.
⏲️ Substitutions & Variations
- Other Berries - While I love the sweet, aromatic loveliness of strawberries, you can easily make a similarly delicious blueberry, blackberry, boysenberry, or raspberry purée.
- Different Acid - Acid brings brightness, helping the strawberries taste even more strawberry-y. Lemon juice is classic, but try lime for a tropical twist. You could also use champagne vinegar or balsamic vinegar for interest.
- Shortcut - Feel free to blitz the strawberries in a blender before or after cooking to make straining easier.
This recipe has not been tested with other substitutions or variations. If you replace or add any ingredients, please let us know how it turned out in the comments below!
📖 How to Make Strawberry Purée: Step-by-Step Instructions
With minimal cooking time and step-by-step photos to guide you, you'll have a silky smooth puree in no time, ready to be strained through a fine mesh sieve and stored in mason jars. Here’s how it’s done:
Step 1: Warm & Smoosh. Place the frozen or fresh strawberries in a small saucepan. On medium heat, start cooking the raspberries while pressing gently to break them down with a spatula.
Step 2: Boil. Bring the strawberries to a boil on the stove until they have fully broken down and the juices have started to reduce.
Step 3: Strain. Remove from the heat and strain through a mesh sieve or chinoise, getting rid of the excess pulp and seeds.
Step 4: Complete & Cool. Finally, stir in lemon juice and allow the sauce to cool.
👩🏻🍳 Expert Tips
- Invest in a Funnel & Squeeze Bottle.
- Experiment! There are tons of delicious ways to put this puréed strawberry sauce to use. Here are a few ideas to get you started:
- Try using strawberry puree for drinks—strawberry lemonade and strawberry lattes are a great place to start. You can also treat it as a strawberry cocktail puree for making adults-only drinks like vanilla berry beer floats, berry bourbon smashes, berry margaritas, and more.
- Use this gorgeous strawberry puree for cakes by either adding it to a berry buttercream or using it as a garnish for serving.
- Drizzle it over your breakfast—it’s great with cream of wheat, overnight oats, or on fluffy brioche french toast, mini pancakes, and waffles.
💭 Recipe FAQs
Just what it sounds like—puréed strawberry sauce.
It depends on the recipe, but in my book, it should be made with only strawberries and fresh lemon juice.
Generally speaking, fruit preserves are thicker, more concentrated, and sweeter than fruit purées. This strawberry purée recipe barely cooks the berries, adding just enough heat for them to release all their juices and make them easy to strain through a sieve. My strawberry freezer jam, on the other hand, has a decent amount of sugar and is cooked long enough for it to become viscous and spreadable.
Not quite. When I think of strawberry syrup, an infused simple syrup comes to mind. This is a clear concoction made from equal parts sugar and water, then infused with fresh berries—perfect for adding to iced tea and other drinks.
Strawberry purée, on the other hand, isn’t diluted with any water. While it is still pourable, I’d argue that the strawberry pulp makes it quite a bit thicker than strawberry simple syrup. The purée would, however, be yummy as a sugar-free alternative to maple syrup on all your favorite breakfast dishes.
To store your simple strawberry puree, pour it into ice-cube trays for small amounts, then transfer the frozen cubes into a freezer-safe container or freezer bag for later use. Mason jars work great too—just leave a little room at the top for expansion. If making a big batch, adding a touch of citric acid or cane sugar helps preserve that fresh strawberry flavor. This easy recipe ensures you have fresh fruit purees on hand for savory sauces or sweet treats throughout the year!
More Strawberry Recipes You’ll Love
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Strawberry Puree
Ingredients
- 12 oz. Strawberries, frozen or fresh
- 2 teaspoon Lemon Juice
Instructions
- Place the frozen or fresh strawberries in a saucepan. On medium heat, start cooking the strawberries while pressing gently to break them down with a spatula.12 oz. Strawberries
- Bring the strawberries to a boil on the stove until the strawberries have fully broken down and the juices have started to reduce. Remove from the heat and strain through a fine-mesh sieve, getting rid of the excess pulp and seeds. Finally, stir in lemon juice and allow the sauce to cool.2 teaspoon Lemon Juice
Video
Notes
- Homemade strawberry purée will last in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week, or in the freezer for up to 3 months.
- I suggest storing it in a squeeze bottle for easy measuring, pouring, or decorating. If you freeze it, consider using an ice cube tray so you can pull out only what you need when you need it.
Wil
This looks good, but it looks like you put the lemon juice in at the beginning instead of after the strawberries broke down. Yes? No? Thank you in advance.
Emily Laurae
Hi Wil - I stir in the lemon juice at the end of the process, after straining the puree!
Anonymous
I love anything strawberry!! cant wait to try this delicious puree!!