Lychee

Lychees are a fragrant, delicious fruit native to southeast Asia. Fresh ones have a hard outer surface, which is cut and peeled away to reveal the nut and flesh inside. Canned lychees are typically pitted, and nearly as good as the fresh kind for cocktails.

You can buy lychee juice in bottles or cans, or you can make it yourself by blending fresh or canned lychees and straining the pulp.

Some recipes here call for lychee puree. You can buy it from some specialty retailers, but it’s easy to make your own – just toss a whole can of lychees in your blender on high speed. Refrigerate the puree and use it within a week.