Spicy Margarita
Tequila, lime and agave with fresh jalapeño muddled in. Bright and sharp, with a slow heat you control.
- Time
- 6 min
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Glass
- Rocks glass
- Strength
- 2.7 UK units
How to make a Spicy Margarita
- Rim the glass. Run a lime wedge around half the rim of a rocks glass and press it into chilli salt. Fill the glass with ice and set it aside to chill. Skip the salt if you prefer.
- Muddle the jalapeño. Put the jalapeño slices and the agave syrup in a shaker. Press them firmly with a muddler about ten times, until the slices look bruised and smell sharp.
- Add the rest and shake. Pour in the tequila, triple sec and lime juice, fill the shaker with ice and shake hard for 12 seconds, until the tin is frosted.
- Strain and taste. Strain through a fine strainer over the ice in the glass, so no seeds end up in the drink. Add a jalapeño slice and take a small sip. If the heat is too much, stir in 5 ml more agave syrup.
- Glass
- Rocks glassNo rocks glass? Any short tumbler.
- Ice
- Ice cubes
- Garnish
- A jalapeño slice and a half rim of chilli saltOr: A lime wheel.
What you need to make a Spicy Margarita
Kit
MuddlerThe handle of a wooden spoon will do.
Cocktail shakerA two-piece Boston tin is the easiest to use and clean.
JiggerA double-ended measure, usually 25 ml and 50 ml.
Citrus squeezerFresh juice makes the biggest difference of anything.
Fine strainerA small tea strainer catches ice shards.
Bottles we'd use
- A 100% agave blanco tequilaEspolon Blanco or Olmeca Altos Plata: clean and peppery, which suits the chilli.Find it on Amazon
- CointreauA dry, clean orange flavour. A cheaper triple sec works but is sweeter, so use less agave.Find it on Amazon
- Chilli lime saltFor the rim. Or mix flaky salt with a pinch of chilli flakes.Find it on Amazon
Links to Amazon are affiliate links: if you buy through them, Bar Bandol may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you.
Spicy Margarita variations and swaps
For a hotter, steadier drink, infuse the tequila instead of muddling. Leave six jalapeño slices in 200 ml of blanco tequila for 20 to 30 minutes, tasting as you go, then strain them out and use the tequila in the same recipe. Fresh red chilli gives a sharper heat than jalapeño, and a very thin sliver of habanero is much fiercer. A few coriander leaves or a slice of cucumber shaken in softens the heat. Swap half the tequila for mezcal if you want smoke as well as spice.
The Spicy Margarita story
There is no single inventor of the Spicy Margarita. It is a modern variation on the classic, and fresh jalapeño has become the usual way to add the heat. Chilli suits tequila, which already has a peppery, green side, and lime keeps the whole drink bright.
Muddling gives you control. Three thin slices give a gentle warmth, and five or six make it properly hot. Most of the heat sits in the seeds and the white pith, so leave them in for a fiercer drink or scrape them out for a milder one. Taste a slice first, because chillies vary a lot.
Spicy Margarita: your questions answered
What is in a Spicy Margarita?
A Spicy Margarita is made with 50 ml tequila blanco, 20 ml triple sec, 25 ml fresh lime juice, 10 ml agave syrup and fresh jalapeño. Garnish: a jalapeño slice and a half rim of chilli salt.
How strong is a Spicy Margarita?
Made to this recipe, a Spicy Margarita contains about 2.7 UK units of alcohol per drink. That is worked out from typical bottle strengths, so it changes with the bottles you use. UK guidelines advise not regularly drinking more than 14 units a week.
What glass do you serve a Spicy Margarita in?
Serve a Spicy Margarita in a rocks glass over ice. No rocks glass? Any short tumbler.
