Planter's Punch

By
Colleen Graham
Photo of Colleen Graham
Colleen Graham
Freelance writer and cocktail book author Colleen Graham is a seasoned mixologist who loves sharing her knowledge of spirits and passion for preparing drinks.
Learn about The Spruce Eats' Editorial Process
Updated on 12/26/22
Planter's Punch

The Spruce / Madhumita Sathishkumar

Prep: 3 mins
Cook: 0 mins
Total: 3 mins
Servings: 32 servings
Yield: 1 gallon

The planter's punch recipe is a fun, fruity, and nonalcoholic punch that is nice to serve at summer parties. The origins of the drink, however, may have roots in the painful history of slavery in the Caribbean. Some say the punch traces back to Jamaica, where African descendants who were enslaved on the island were tasked with making the punch for plantation owners. Thus, the name "planter's punch".

The drink has a wonderful tropical fruit taste that is dominated by orange and pineapple juices, with a little grenadine to sweeten things up.

Like the traditional spiked punches of Colonial North America, this is meant to be served with lots of fresh fruit. Slicing a whole orange, lime, and lemon and adding a few stemless cherries or seasonal berries adds to the flavor. The fruits also make a spectacular presentation when floating in the punch bowl.

If you like, make this as a single drink in a highball glass over ice or mix up the rum-based planter's punch.

Ingredients

  • 1 (64-ounce) bottle orange juice

  • 1 (46-ounce) can pineapple juice

  • 2/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice, from about 3 lemons

  • 2/3 cup grenadine

  • Lemon, lime, or orange slices, or seasonal fruit, for garnish

Steps to Make It

  1. Gather the ingredients.

    Planter's Punch ingredients

    The Spruce / Madhumita Sathishkumar

  2. Pour the juices and grenadine into a punch bowl filled with ice.

    Pour the juices and grenadine into a punch bowl filled with ice

    The Spruce / Madhumita Sathishkumar

  3. Stir well.

    stir the punch in the punch bowl

    The Spruce / Madhumita Sathishkumar

  4. Float fruit slices on top.

    Float fruit slices on top of the punch

    The Spruce / Madhumita Sathishkumar

  5. Serve in individual cups filled with ice. Enjoy.

    Planter's Punch poured into glasses

    The Spruce / Madhumita Sathishkumar

Tips

  • If you can, mix this punch up the night before serving with half the fruits you intend to use. Like a good sangria, the flavors will marry in the refrigerator overnight and create a better tasting punch. All you have to do before the party is pour it over ice and add the rest of the fruit.
  • Before serving your punch, give it a taste to see how you like the flavor. If it's too tart, add a little more grenadine. If it's too sweet, a little lemon juice should bring it into balance. Also, if you'd like to create a sparkling punch, simply add ginger ale as seen in the Cinderella.
  • The punch recipe yields one gallon of punch before factoring in any dilution for ice melt. This is the recommended amount for 10 people, assuming each will have four 4-ounce drinks during the party. However, if you're offering other drinks, you can assume that each person will not drink that much.
  • The recipe is designed to be very convenient and budget-friendly. It relies on the average bottle sizes for the two main juices. Many orange juices are available in 64-ounce (1/2 gallon) jugs while large cans of pineapple juice are typically 46 ounces. Of course, if you're in doubt that you will have enough punch, it's always better to have more available so you don't run out.
  • The planter's punch is not just for party service. It's also a nice pre-mixed punch to keep in your fridge for a quick juice drink whenever you like. Simply take the fruit out after letting it steep overnight or skip the fruit entirely.
  • You can also pour this as a single drink by retaining the ingredient ratios and stirring it over ice. For example, in a 10-ounce glass, you would pour 5 ounces orange juice, 3 3/4 ounces pineapple juice, and 1/4 ounce each lemon juice and grenadine.
Nutrition Facts (per serving)
77 Calories
0g Fat
19g Carbs
1g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 32
Amount per serving
Calories 77
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 0g 0%
Saturated Fat 0g 0%
Cholesterol 0mg 0%
Sodium 5mg 0%
Total Carbohydrate 19g 7%
Dietary Fiber 1g 3%
Total Sugars 13g
Protein 1g
Vitamin C 63mg 313%
Calcium 19mg 1%
Iron 0mg 2%
Potassium 219mg 5%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)