The tequila cocktail we have on rotation right now is this Spicy Cucumber Jalapeño Margarita. What’s not to love?! It’s refreshing, a gorgeous shade of green, and is totally delicious.
And, even if you’ve had a spicy margarita before, we can bet you haven’t had this one. Why? Because the base is a minty fresh cucumber juice that makes it feel like you’re having spiked green juice!Â
How To Make Spicy Cucumber Margaritas
Did we mention you can make a large pitcher? That means it’s perfect for a party, be it Cinco de Mayo or just a summertime cookout. This recipe makes 4 to 5 drinks but it’s easy to multiply to make as large a pitcher sas you’d like.
By the way, if you want to make a single serving of a Spicy Cucumber Margarita, the easiest thing is to make our Cadillac Margarita with cucumber and spice. We usually add 4 slices of jalapeños and 6 slices of a Persian cucumber into a cocktail shaker and muddling it until the cucumbers are broken up. At that point, just make the cocktail as it’s written!
Here’s the lowdown on this recipe for a pitcher of Spicy Cucumber Margaritas:
How To Make Spicy Cucumber Margarita
- Make The Cucumber Juice: Combine the cucumber, fresh mint leaves, simple syrup (or agave syrup), and fresh lime juice and blend it until it’s super smooth.Â
- Strain The Mixture: Pass the cucumber juice through a fine mesh strainer a few times until all you have is bright green juice.Â
- Muddle The Jalapeno: If you want a bit of spice, then add a few jalapenos and break them up in the bottom of the pitcher.Â
- Make A Batch Of Cocktails: In a large pitcher, stir together the cucumber puree, tequila, and lime slices with some ice. Top it with fresh mint leaves and then serve.
Tips To Make This Recipe
- Strain It: Don’t skip the straining! Otherwise, your margarita will separate. Of course, you can just stir it together if it does, though.Â
- Blanco Tequila: Opt for silver (aka blanco) tequila over añejo or reposado tequila which are too flavorful and will overpower the drink.Â
- Up The Spiciness: This drink has a medium level of spice. If you like your cocktails super spicy, you can add more jalapenos to the pitcher or even soak the jalapenos in the tequila as we did here.
Other Spicy Margarita Recipes
Here are a few more spicy cocktails worth mixing up:
What To Serve With This Spicy Cucumber Jalapeño Margarita
Thanks to its refreshing, sweet-spicy flavor, this cocktail is very food-friendly. Here are a few of our favorite recipes to serve it with:Â
- The Simplest, Most Classic Guacamole
- Grilled Avocado Salad with Green Goddess Dressing
- California-Style Crunchy Fried Avocado Taco
- {Rajas De Chile Poblano} Charred Poblano Peppers With Cream
- Tequila Citrus Carne Asada
Check out our bar essentials to level up your home bar. Then have fun shaking it up and be sure to share your results with us by tagging @saltandwind and #swsociety on social!
Mint Cucumber Jalapeño Margarita Cocktail Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
For The Mint Cucumber Juice:
- 1 pound Persian cucumbers ends trimmed and peeled and roughly chopped
- 1 cup fresh mint leaves
- 1/3 cup freshly squeezed lime juice
- 1/4 cup agave syrup or simple syrup or honey
For A Pitcher Of Margaritas:
- 2 cups Mint Cucumber Juice or store bought cucumber juice
- 1 cup 100% agave silver tequila
- 2 jalapeño peppers stemmed and cut into coins
- 1 handful mint leaves for serving
- 1 medium Lime or 3 key limes thinly sliced for garnish (more if you want a salted rim)
- Persian cucumbers slices for garnish
Instructions
- Make The Mint Cucumber Juice: Combine the cucumber, 1 cup of mint leaves, lime juice, and simple syrup in the carafe of a blender. Place the top on the blender carafe, then blend until the mixture is smooth, at least 30 seconds. (Depending on your blender, you may need to add up to ¼ cup water to get the mixture to blend smoothly.)Strain the mixture twice through a fine mesh strainer, pushing on the back of the mixture with a spatula to extract as much juice as possible (you should have about 2 cups). Discard the solids and set the mixture aside. TIP: Puree can be made up to 8 hours ahead of time and refrigerated until ready to use.
- Make A Pitcher Of Cocktails: If you want to make the drinks spicy, slice the jalapenos into rounds and add them to the bottom of the pitcher (use only one jalapeno and remove the seeds for mild spice and up to 3 jalapenos with seeds for spicy). With a muddler or back of a wooden spoon, muddle the jalapenos for a few seconds to release a touch of the spice.Add the mint cucumber juice, tequila, a pinch of salt, the thinly sliced lime, and a few handfuls of ice. Smack a handful of mint leaves over the pitcher, drop them in, and stir. Taste and add more sweetener or lime as desired.Â
- Serve: If desired, slice the Persian cucumber lengthwise into paper-thin strips (or slice an English cucumber into coins and place a few in each serving glass. Pour the cocktails into margarita or rocks glasses with a salted rim (optional), add a sprig of mint, and serve.
