November 12, 2020

Fresh Frozen Margarita

So, I really want to call this “Perfect Frozen Margarita”, but I loathe those types of titles. Plus, maybe someone can figure out how to make this even better! The main takeaway from this is there is never any need to buy that pre-bottled, overly sweetened, radioactive green “margarita” mix ever again.

Let’s talk ingredients:

Tequila. Use a decent tequila. I like Cuervo 1800 Silver for margaritas myself, but any decent one will do. I find the silver tequilas help keep the drink almost white, but feel free to use whatever you like.
Simple Syrup. Please don’t buy this either as it’s so simple (heh) to make at home. Add 1 cup of sugar and 1 cup of water to a small sauce pan, heat and stir until mixed, then kill the heat and cool. I keep simple syrup in a jar in my refrigerator at all times. It will last up to a month in there, but it rarely makes it that long!
Fresh Lime Juice. You also never need to buy that green squeeze bottle of lime juice again. Limes are notoriously stingy with giving up their juices, so take one lime and roll it on a flat surface with the palm of your hand, applying decent pressure, until you feel it getting a bit soft and squishy; this will help coax the lime to give up its juice. I then cut it in half horizontally and use a small spoon to press the juice out. This is the most time-consuming part, but I don’t want to have to clean and store a specialized juicer just for this.
Orange Liqueur. Grand Marnier is top shelf, Cointreau is good, Triple Sec if you must. A splash of orange juice can be used in a pinch.

That’s it! Four ingredients. This is all you really need.

If you like salt on the rim, then take some of the discarded lime halves and run the cut ends over the top of the rim. Pour some kosher or sea salt into a plate or flat surface that’s wider than the rim of your glasses, and place the glass rims into the salt and turn a bit to get the salt to stick to the rims.

Add these to your blender with a pinch of salt, add ice until there is none floating, and blend until consistent. You may even keep your blender container and blades in the freezer for a few minutes beforehand to help reduce heat transfer.

Now just pour the margaritas into the glass and enjoy!

Riffs

If you don’t like frozen margaritas(!!), then just add all to a pitcher and pour instead of blending.
You can add some fruit puree as well. Strawberry is of course classic, but other fruits like pears, peaches, and blueberries can make for some fun variations.
When making the simple syrup, as you’re heating it, you can add other ingredients to it to infuse, then strain them out. Things like jalapeños, habañeros, cilantro, or even savory ingredients like red onion and garlic can make for some very interesting flavors. Let me know what you try!