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Homemade Hawaiian Punch is the best fruit punch around! This tropical combination of juices is perfect for any occasion and sure to please your taste buds!
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Why We Love This Recipe
Growing up, this Hawaiian Punch recipe made a regular appearance at our house. It was tasty, sweet, and who doesn’t love a bright red fruit punch?!
Today I’m showing you how to make your own Hawaiian Punch at home. It’s as simple as stirring up a bunch of fruit juices, adding a little sugar, and letting it chill in the fridge.
This punch is so good, my kids would rather have the homemade stuff verses the store-bought bottles now. It’s great for birthday parties, holidays, or just when you want to really impress your kids.
Hawaiian Punch Ingredients
Currently, the fruits included in the commercially prepared drink are apple, apricot, guava, orange, papaya, passion fruit, and pineapple.
This recipe is a little bit of a spin on these fruits, because you can’t always find all of these fruit juices and nectars at the store and my kids happen to like this combination a lot. It includes:
Water – The base for the drink.
Pineapple juice – If you want your punch to have a really tropical flavor, you can swap out 1 cup of pineapple juice for mango nectar. I’ve tried both ways and they’re equally delicious.
Guava nectar and Apricot nectar – These Nectar drinks are flavored from the pulp of the fruits and can usually be found in the juice aisle at your grocers.
Apple juice
Orange juice
Sugar – Yes we use sugar to sweeten the drink, but it’s only a fraction of what you’ll find in the bottled varieties.
Red food coloring – optional, but will make your punch look just like the real thing.
How To Make Homemade Hawaiian Punch
Easiest punch recipe ever. Ready?
- Start by getting a 2.5-quart pitcher. It can be glass, plastic, ceramic, whatever you have on hand.
- Next, you’ll pour the water, pineapple juice, guava nectar, apple juice, orange juice, apricot nectar, and sugar into the pitcher. Stir everything together until the sugar dissolves completely.
- At this point, your punch is ready to drink. If you want that bright red Hawaiian Punch color, pour in a little red food coloring – the liquid kind not gel coloring. Then give the punch one more stir.
- Place your pitcher in the fridge for an hour or two to let it chill. This punch is the best when it’s nice and cold, but you can drink immediately too.
Is Hawaiian Punch Good For You?
The store-bought bottles have a lot of added sugar and only contain only 5% juice, plus other preservatives. My homemade version does have some sugar added to it, but most of the sugars are naturally occurring from all the juices used to make it.
Bonus: This homemade Hawaiian Punch recipe doesn’t have all the extra preservatives the original punch has.
You can also leave out the red food coloring if you prefer. It tastes the same either way.
Variations
Make it Sparkle – Add some Ginger Ale or Sprite to the punch for a fizzy drink.
Ice Cream – Add some vanilla ice cream or rainbow sherbet to the punch bowl for a fun spin on this kid friendly party drink.
Adult Punch – For a fun adult version, make it a little boozy and spike it with some vodka or rum. Make sure to label it so your guests are aware!
How To Serve
This Hawaiian Punch recipe is perfect for backyard cookouts all summer long. Serve in a big glass pitcher or drink dispenser, or in a fancy punch bowl. Provide some cute straws or even fruit skewers and umbrellas.
If you’re making a big batch for a drink dispenser or a punch bowl, don’t add ice because it will water the punch down as it melts. Instead, let your guests fill their glass with ice and then pour in the punch.
I love to serve this punch up alongside some grilled chicken, Balsamic Grilled Vegetables, Classic Macaroni Salad, and Jalapeno Popper Deviled Eggs.
- Store in the fridge in a tightly closed container for up to 2 weeks. It’s perfect for making ahead of time!
- To keep your punch cold at a party, don’t use ice. Instead freeze some extra punch or juice in ice trays and they won’t water down your drink!
More Summer Drinks To Try
Some of our other favorite summer drinks are Homemade Horchata, Strawberry Banana Smoothie, and Classic Margaritas.
Homemade Hawaiian Punch
Ingredients
- 4 cups water
- 3 cups pineapple juice
- 1 1/2 cups guava nectar
- 1 1/2 cups apple juice
- 1/3 cup orange juice
- 1/3 cup apricot nectar
- 1/2 cup sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon liquid red food coloring
Instructions
- Pour water, juices, and sugar into a 2.5-quart pitcher and stir until sugar is dissolved.
- Add red food color for that signature Hawaiian punch color and stir again.
- Chill in the fridge and then serve as is or over ice. This punch tastes better after it's cooled down.
Hi
How much ginger ale or sprite can I add to this punch.
I guess as much as you want until it has the flavor you’re looking for.