Beautiful 3-5 ft. plants with red stems and leaf veins. The bright red calyxes can be used to make "zingy" tea, sauce, syrup, or jam, or candied whole for an unusual treat. For strongly flavored teas, simmer for 10-20 minutes. Citrus-flavored flowers are delicious on frozen desserts.
Roselle was called "Florida cranberry" in the 1890s.
In the Caribbean, sorrel drink is made from sepals of the roselle. It is prepared by boiling dried sepals and calyces of the sorrel/flower of the plant in water for 8 to 10 minutes (or until the water turns red), then adding sugar. It is often served chilled. This is done in Trinidad and Tobago, Guyana, Antigua, Barbados, St. Lucia, Dominica, Grenada,and Jamaica where it is called 'sorrel'.
In the UK, the dried calyces and ready-made sorrel syrup are widely and cheaply available in Caribbean and Asian grocers. The fresh calyces are imported mainly during December and January to make Christmas and New Year infusions, which are often made into cocktails with rum.
Rosella flowers are sold as Wild Hibiscus flowers in syrup in Australia as a gourmet product. Recipes include filling them with goats cheese; serving them on baguette slices baked with brie; and placing one plus a little syrup in a champagne flute before adding the champagne, the bubbles cause the flower to open.
In Nigeria, rosella jam has been made since colonial times and is still sold regularly at community fetes and charity stalls. It is similar in flavour to plum jam, although more acidic. It differs from other jams in that the pectin is obtained from boiling the interior buds of the rosella flowers. It is thus possible to make rosella jam with nothing but rosella buds and sugar.
In Burma, the buds of the roselle are made into 'preserved fruits' or jams. Depending on the method and the preference, the seeds are removed or included. The jams, made from roselle buds and sugar, are red and tangy.
In India, Roselle is commonly made into a type of pickle. "Sorrel jelly" is manufactured in Trinidad. The flowers and young leaves are edible and have a citrus tang. Space plants 3-6 ft. apart, the wider the spacing, the more calyxes will ripen.
Frost-tender perennial. Germination: 75-85°F, 7-14 days. Transplant after last frost. Full sun. 36-60 in. tall.