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Homemade Stevia Extract

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natural tincture remedy recipe Homemade Stevia Extract

Liquid stevia extract is a relatively easy tincture to make at home, and it is a much cheaper alternative to the store bought versions. If you grow your own stevia, you can preserve the leaves while still fresh to make the most potent extract. This is my basic stevia recipe, and it is suitable for kids and pregnant women as the alcohol cooks out.

I get dried stevia leaf from Mountain Rose Herbs, or you can preserve your own.

 
natural tincture remedy recipe Homemade Stevia Extract
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Ingredients
  • 1- Quart or pint glass jar with lid (both boiled to sterilize)
  • fresh or dried stevia leaf
  • enough vodka, rum or everclear to fill the jar (at least half of the total size of the jar)
  • a cheesecloth or fine mesh strainer
  • small sauce pan

Instructions
  1. Put the fresh or dried stevia leaf in the jar, filling it ⅔ full.
  2. Pour vodka/rum/everclear over the leaves to fill the jar and put the lid on tightly.
  3. Put in a place where you will see it and leave for 36 hours, shaking occasionally. (I put on the counter and shake every time I’m cooking) Leaving it for longer than this seems to make it bitter.
  4. Strain the liquid into the small sauce pan (it will be greenish-brown)
  5. Turn heat on low and bring to a simmer. Important: do not boil! It will ruin the taste!!!
  6. Simmer for about ½ an hour, stirring constantly and making sure not to boil. It will thicken. When it gets to your desired thickness, remove from heat.
  7. Store in small jar in the fridge for up to 3 months.

 

This can be used in baking recipes like Crock Pot Cheesecake or Pumpkin Cheesecake. It is also great in coffee, tea, chai lattes or pumpkin lattes.  It is pretty much the only sweetener we use in our house and by making it ourselves, we avoid the bitter aftertaste in the bleached store versions.

Do you use stevia? Ever made it? 

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Wellness Mama is a full-time housewife with a background in nutrition, journalism and communications. Her passion is helping others achieve optimal health through a “Wellness Lifestyle.” She has helped hundreds of clients lose weight, increase athletic performance, improve fertility, and overcome numerous health problems and diseases. Connect with her on Twitter, Facebook, Google+, & Pinterest.

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  • http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=564979898 Anitra Sweet

    i love stevia! use it in my coffee every morning. i haven’t used it in baking just yet but i plan on it!

  • Chaela1963

    is there a possibility that the tincture could ignite while being heated??

  • http://wellnessmama.com Wellness Mama

    I don’t think that it could on that low of heat

  • Owensmomma

    is there anyway to make a tincture out of the powder sold in stores? and pure vanilla extract? yummm…

  • Billicummings

    Do you ever use agave?

  • Helene1580

    I’m so excited to try this.  I found store-bought stevia to be horribly bitter.

  • Meg

    How much does this recipe make and what is the best way to store it?

  • Melanie

    Can you grow your own stevia in your home?  I so don’t have a green thumb but I love stevia and this could sure save us a lot of money!!!  thanks!

  • http://wellnessmama.com Wellness Mama

    We do…. we grow a bunch outside in the garden and keep a small pot inside during the winter.

  • http://wellnessmama.com Wellness Mama

    We do…. we grow a bunch outside in the garden and keep a small pot inside during the winter.

  • Melanie

    May I ask where you get your seeds?  Is it a tough thing to grow in the house?  I live in a condo so a garden unfortunately isn’t an option;(  thank you!

  • Kelly Bourland

    How much stevia leaf should I order to be able to do this? 

  • http://wellnessmama.com Wellness Mama

    Four ounces should be plenty, depending on how much you want to make. That should be enough to do about a quart in the original jar and 8-12 ounces once it cooks down.

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Leesy-Bosezcu-Phillips/1040110322 Leesy Bosezcu-Phillips

    I have used Stevia for years, back when I first started using it about 10 years ago the only one I knew of was soo bitter it had chrysanthemum extract added. Now its everywhere and not as bitter however I was concerned if it was actually better. Thinking that perhaps it is more processed, so the thought of making my own really appeals to me, I will definitely be making this! I was wondering if u could use the dried stevia to make a powder, or do u use it straight?

  • http://wellnessmama.com Wellness Mama

    I have dried and powdered actual stevia leaf before and it works well. It doesn’t mix well into liquid though, so this version is the one I use in tea, coffee, etc

  • Jess

    Could this same method be applied to other extracts such as lavender or mint?

  • http://wellnessmama.com Wellness Mama

    Absolutely. Same proportions

  • Tanya

     Hi,

    Vanilla extract is done in the same way by putting whole vanilla beans in alcohol such as bourbon, vodka and letting it sit, adding new bean skins whenever you’ve scraped them for other recipes.

  • Qaya1351

    hi im wondering if you have heard about stevia leaf being used as an anti fertility herb. ive used a powder form of stevia for at least 15 yrs and its one that its not completely white so its much better than most white powder forms. it can be so expensive so i was hping to use the leaf and try the tinture you have done but i read tghat using it in the green natural form causes infertility issues. not sure what stevia to use. we are hoping to get pregnant. any recommendations?

  • http://wellnessmama.com Wellness Mama

    There is some evidence that it blocks fertility, though the white powdered forms would cause this as well. I’m yet to see anything definite on it, but it would probably be prudent to avoid it (and green peas) while trying to conceive. If you’ve been using it for that long, there are some supplements that can help get fertility back… http://wellnessmama.com/1326/how-to-get-pregnant-naturally/

  • Candace

    Why is this only good for 3 months and why refrigerate? I thought alcohol based extracts were basically good forever.  Are you cooking off the alcohol?

  • http://wellnessmama.com Wellness Mama

    It does change it when you cook off the alcohol. If you skip that step, they do last forever. The cooked version may last longer than that too, but that was the longest any of mine lasted before we ran out, so I didn’t want to say they could last longer when I hadn’t tested it…

  • Rachel

    I’ve seen lots of comments around the internet about homemade tasting grassy.  Do you find this to be the case, or not?  Or is it something that you’ve just grown accustomed to and are not bothered by?  I have a stevia plant growing and thought I’d give this a try but have other things I’d like to put in alcohol, too, for later use :)

  • http://wellnessmama.com Wellness Mama

    I don’t really notice a grassy taste, but I would suggest using small, young leaves if you can…

  • Rachel

    I have small young leaves so I’ll give them a try before my plant gets too big.  Thanks for the suggestion :)

  • Pegmedi1

    Tried this and it cooked for hours but never thickened and I simmered it all the way down to practically nothing? What could I have down wrong?

  • Mlinggam

    Hi, i don’t know whether i missed something, but how many leaves do you use, if using freshly plucked stevia leaves? thanks!

  • Dana

    Any chance of being able to do this with just water? I am sure the shelf life would not be near as long. What about the taste? Just curious. I would like to try both ways. Thanks for any help.

  • sayuri

    with regard to the above recipe, can you tell me what the sugar equivalent is for the stevia syrup?

  • http://wellnessmama.com Wellness Mama

    You wouldn’t be able to use in in place of sugar in baking recipes because the consistency is different, but a couple of drops is usually equal to a teaspoon of sugar.

  • http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1495089096 Kelly Ragan

    Where do you get those little dropper bottles? So, it’s ok that my extract is brown? I just used distilled water and a coffee filter with my dried stevia leaves.

  • http://wellnessmama.com Wellness Mama

    Brown is fine… I got mine from http://wellnessmama.com/go/mountain-rose-herbs/

  • http://twitter.com/CP_Pudding_Girl C Prokopyshyn

    I tested stevia and have to say I’m not a fan as the taste is too bitter
    but maybe it isn’t all bad? I think more research over a longer period
    of time is needed anyhow to really see the benefits and dangers. In Germany and the UK Stevia
    is very new to us, only was legally allowed in our countries dec 2011 so
    we’re being quite cautious about it. Plus there is only one powdered
    brand type at the moment and no liquid form unless we import it from
    America. getting hold of the leaves is impossible lol but interesting post! http://pudding-girl.de/about-stevia/

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