Nothing beats the taste of fresh homemade blood orange juice during peak citrus season! It’s bursting with the sweet-tart taste of blood oranges and has a deep crimson color that brings a stunning shade to all of your cocktails, mocktails, and more!
Whether you drink the juice on its own or use it to make a blood orange simple syrup or enjoy it in specialty drink like a blood orange daiquiri or blood orange margarita, you’re sure to fall in love with this special crop of citrus!
Blood orange season is one of the most anticipated citrus seasons in the world! And growing up with a grandmother from Southern Italy means I understand the hype around this fruit. These super special oranges originated in the southern mediterranean. They have a bold and vibrant hue, a slight tart flavor, and floral raspberry-like taste, which is why they’re sometimes called raspberry oranges.
why this blood orange juice recipe works:
🍊 bold & vibrant. These vivid oranges range in color from light orange-red to a deep red color, almost maroon in hue. The resulting fresh juice is a truly stunning color!
🌟 special & seasonal. Blood orange season runs from December through April, sometimes extending from November to May. This means when the season is over, the oranges are GONE!
⏱️ quick & easy. One ingredient means this juice is super simple to make and contains zero artificial ingredients! If you want to make even quicker work of this recipe, you can use an electric juicer.
🛒 ingredients
See the recipe card for the exact quantities.
🍳 how to make fresh blood orange juice
1: Wash and dry your oranges to remove any dirt or impurities.
2: Slice the oranges in half.
juice the oranges
3: Juice each orange half using a citrus juicer or manual citrus press.
4: If desired, strain your juice through a fine mesh sieve to remove excess pulp from the orange juice.
serve & store
5: Pour your juice in an airtight storage bottle.
6: Store in the fridge for up to 3 days.
💡tips & tricks for getting it right
🍽️ how to serve your fresh juice
- freeze it – I love freezing seasonal juices and purées into ice cube trays for later in the year. It’s a great way to extend the season and enjoy these special fruits year round. As a bonus, if you portion the cubes out into 1 ounce servings, you can easily add the juice into drinks throughout the year!
- blood orange simple syrup – use the juice to make a flavorful seasonal syrup!
- blood orange soda – one of my all-time favorite ways to enjoy seasonal produce is making homemade sodas! Take a trip to Southern Italy without ever leaving your kitchen!
- blood orange spritzer – add 2-4 ounces of juice to sparkling water or one of your favorite bubbly wines like prosecco or champagne for a refreshing drink, or put a splash into a blood orange spritz cocktail!
ℹ️ troubleshooting tips
- use within a few days – fresh juices don’t tend to last very long, even when refrigerated. You’ll want to use this juice up within a few days; three to be exact. This is also assuming you have it properly stored in an airtight container, so no open pitchers, please!
- add lemon – if you want to extend the shelf life of your juice a little, you can add in up to 1 ounce of lemon juice per 8 ounces of orange juice. This will make your juice a bit more tart, but it will also help highlight the floral flavors of the oranges. The lemon also acts as a natural preservative, extending the freshness of the juice by an extra day or two.
- sweeten it – while I think the juice is perfectly sweet on it’s own, if you like you can add in a few ounces of simple syrup that’s been infused with other citrus fruits, like lemon syrup or key lime syrup, to boost the citrus flavor. The added sugars of a simple syrup will highlight the fruity and vibrant flavors of the blood orange juice!
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♻️ customize your blood orange juice
While I recommend using as many blood oranges as possible, sometimes you just can’t get as much juice as you want from a few pounds of fruit. In this case, you can use one of the varieties below to join the mix! Stick to a 2:1 ratio of blood oranges to other varieties of fruit for the best flavor.
- Cara Cara oranges – these pinkish oranges are sweeter in flavor than traditional juicing oranges like Valencia or Navel varieties. Their lighter color also makes them the perfect choice to complement the dazzling color of blood oranges.
- tangerines – tangerine fruits are also much sweeter in taste than conventional oranges. They’re technically the same type of citrus as mandarins, but they often get lumped in with oranges.
- mandarins – You know those cute little peelable oranges that are popular in lunch boxes? Mandarin orange juice compliments the fresh-squeezed blood orange juice perfectly!
- other juicing oranges – other regular oranges that are conventionally used for juicing include Valencia oranges and navel oranges. However, you might not get the striking dark blood-like maroon color in your final juice blend when using a combination of oranges.
❓how is blood orange juice different than regular orange juice?
| Blood Orange Juice | Regular Orange Juice | |
|---|---|---|
| color | deep red to maroon | bright orange |
| flavor | sweet, raspberry notes, less tart | classic citrus, more acidic |
| antioxidants | high (anthocyanins) | moderate |
| season | December-April only | year-round |
| price | $4-6/bottle store-bought | $2-4/bottle |
| best uses | cocktails, mocktails, special occasions | everyday drinking |
| vitamin C | high | high |
| acidity level | lower (easier on stomach) | higher |
🧰 equipment needed & storage tips
🫙 how to store homemade orange juice
Store your juice in an airtight container in the fridge. It has a relatively short shelf-life of about 48-72 hours, or 2-3 days.
If your juice smells sour, bitter, or vinegar-like, it’s no longer safe to drink!
💬 q+a
How many blood oranges does it take to make 1 cup of juice?
You’ll need about 10 oranges that are 2-3 inches in diameter to get 1 cup of juice from them.
When are blood oranges in season?
Peak blood orange season usually runs from November through May, but sometimes it goes from December – April.
Can I substitute regular oranges for blood oranges?
While you can substitute regular oranges, you’ll lose the unique flavor and stunning red color that makes blood orange juice special. For best results, use at least 75% blood oranges.
🗓️ when to find blood oranges
peak season: Early winter – late spring (December through April)
best months: Mid-winter – early spring (January, February, March)
extended season: November – May (sometimes through June depending on growing season)
🛒 where to buy:
- Whole Foods + Fresh Market – usually has the best selection and availability, even outside peak seasonality
- Trader Joe’s or Sprouts – great prices during peak season
- local farmers markets + Italian markets – freshest options, often carry super seasonal Sicilian-specific varieties
- online – for hard-to-find varieties
💡pro-tip: Stock up during peak season and freeze the juice in ice cube trays. I love using SouperCubes trays for measured cubes of 1 ounce each for easy measuring later!
💰 price comparison:
- blood oranges: $3-5/lb (seasonal)
- regular oranges: $1-2/lb (year-round)
- store-bought blood orange juice: $4-12/bottle
- YOUR HOMEMADE JUICE: ~$2/cup (muuuuuch cheaper!)
If you make this recipe, please leave a review in the comments and a star rating!
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
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How to Make Blood Orange Juice (Homemade Fresh Recipe)
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Equipment
- 1 cutting board
- 1 knife
Ingredients
- 10 blood oranges medium sized, 2-3" in diameter
Instructions
wash & prep the oranges
- Wash and dry your oranges to remove any dirt or impurities.
- Slice your oranges in half.
juice & strain
- Juice using an electric juicer or a manual juice press. You'll need 10-12 oranges to get 1 cup of fresh juice, and you'll get more juice from an electric juicer than a manual press.
- If desired, strain your juice through a fine mesh sieve to remove excess pulp from the orange juice.
serve & store
- Store your juice in an airtight storage bottle in the fridge for up to 3 days.
- If you want to store the juice for longer, you can freeze it into portioned cubes in the freezer.
Notes
- Cara Cara Oranges
- Tangerines
- Mandarins
- Navel or Valencia Oranges
There is nothing better than fresh squeezed blood orange juice just like mama used to make. Do you know where I can find fresh ones in Dallas?
Oh I love that this juice reminds you of your mom! 🥹 I have had great luck finding blood oranges in grocery stores and specialty stores, like Sprouts, Aldi, Fresh Market, Trader Joes, or Whole Foods. You can even try checking a grocery delivery app to see if there in stock near you!