How to Make Distilled Rosewater at Home

Did you know rosewater has been used for thousands of years? Cleopatra used to bathe in rosewater and clean her face with it. Rosewater was a popular remedy for depression in the middle ages. People have been using it for centuries for its numerous health and beauty benefits!

There are a few different ways to make rosewater. I went with the distilled method in this recipe, as it is the traditional way of making rosewater. It's a little more time consuming than the simmering method or the infusion method, but it produces a more concentrated rosewater with even more natural benefits.

It also has a longer shelf life than the other methods, so it's ideal to use for homemade beauty products. Plus it has a clearer colour than the other approaches, so it is great to use in recipes where you don't want any added colour.

However, the distilling method will only yield a small amount of rosewater, the extra rosewater in the pan (which is essentially made using the simmering method) can be used as well. I think this way of making rosewater is the most efficient, because you get the best of both worlds in one go.

You just need two ingredients to make rosewater: distilled water and rose petals.

Where to get distilled water from in the U.K?

1. Online: I got mine off amazon, here is the link.

2. Some major supermarkets like Tesco and Sainsburys etc, may stock distilled water in the bottled water section of their shop.

Health benefits of Rosewater:

• It contains a number of antioxidants.

• It has anti-inflammatory qualities.

• It has antidepressant and anti anxiety properties.

• It’s nutritionally dense. Rose petals contain vitamins A, C, E, and B.

• Rosewater has been said to help with headaches, improve digestion, help treat constipation, and can soothe a sore throat.

• Used topically for aging skin, dermatitis, eczema, wound cleaning, and burns.

Now that you know some of the amazing benefits of rosewater, lets jump right into my How to Make Distilled Rosewater at Home recipe!

The rose petals will lose their colour when finished, like this.

How to Make Distilled Rosewater at Home

Ingredients

• About 1 cup of fresh rose petals (or 3 full heads of roses)

• 1 pint of distilled water

• Plenty of ice cubes (about 4 cups or so)

This yields about 3-4 Tablespoons of distilled rosewater, plus the rest of the rosewater (a little less than 1 pint, or 2 cups) which is made using the simmering method.

Directions

Supplies needed: A large pot with a lid, a heatproof bowl that fits inside the pot, a strainer, a larger airtight container (for storage of the extra simmered rosewater), a smaller airtight container (for distilled rosewater), and a ziplock bag.

1. Collect your roses.

2. Pluck the petals carefully, trying not to bruise any. Remove any visible bugs. If preferred you can gently mist your petals to clean them with a spray bottle.

3. Place petals in your pot. Add distilled water. Place the bowl in the pot, careful to not get any water in it.

4. Put the lid upside down on the pot, add ice over the top covering the lid.

5. Turn on very low heat, and simmer gently for about 20-30 minutes (You will know it is finished when the petals have lost all their colour.). Carefully remove and replace ice with fresh ice as needed.*

6. When finished turn off heat and leave lid on to let cool. Once cool, place the distilled rosewater into your smaller pot. And strain the simmered rosewater into your larger pot for storage.

Store the distilled rosewater in the fridge for up to six months. Store the simmered rosewater in the fridge for up to one month.

*Tip- It may be easier to place ice in a plastic ziplock bag over the top of the pan, then it will be easier to switch out without fiddling with the non-distilled water/on top of the pan and risking it getting into your pan.