Discover my favorite easy trick to making the best spicy margaritas with fresh jalapeños. There’s no need to buy complicated, expensive ingredients or plan days in advance when you want to enjoy a refreshing spicy marg! Learn how to make a jalapeño margarita in less than 5-minutes using my homemade recipe, or other versions included here, such as skinny, muddled with fruit, frozen, an even quicker shortcut margarita hack!
Easy Spicy Margarita with muddled Jalapeños
If you love the flavor combination of sweet and spicy, then this spicy margarita recipe is just for you! Use the included simple margarita recipe below or other versions discussed here, like famous limeade margaritas, a pitcher for a crowd, a fresh skinny version, frozen, or the yummy addition of fruit!
What I particularly love about this cocktail is just how quick, yet tasty it is! Simply add a sliced fresh jalapeño pepper to a cocktail shaker or muddle them at the bottom of a glass. Add the margarita ingredients, shake or stir, then enjoy!
Of course, this technique for making spicy jalapeño margaritas can be adapted to your favorite margarita recipe as well. Add jalapeño slices to a classic margarita, frozen, or make a skinny spicy margarita recipe. All the modifications are discussed here, along with bonus, unique tips!
Ingredient notes
A smooth-tasting spicy margarita cocktail is dependent on the perfect proportions of the same basic flavors. This spicy jalapeño version melds all these components in perfect unison for a great tasting drink.
- Tequila – There’s a variety to choose from, such as silver, gold, reposado, aged, agave, or blanco tequila with dozens of brands within each category. So how do you choose? Consider your price point. Extremely expensive tequila is best for sipping straight, and its quality would be masked in a margarita. Therefore, I go for the middle ground, something smooth and affordable, such as Patron or Hornitos.
- Orange Liqueur – These include triple sec, Cointreau, and Grand Marnier. Which orange liqueur to use also depends on how much you are willing to spend. For a spicy jalapeno margarita, I stick with triple sec or Cointreau.
- Fresh Lime Juice – This is where the quality and taste of a homemade margarita shines through. Use freshly squeezed lime juice for the best flavor.
- Sweetener – For a traditional version use sour mix, a skinny margarita uses freshly squeezed orange juice and a low carb sweetener, for the shortcut version use Simply Limeade.
- Jalapeños – Bring out the spice with fresh jalapeño slices, which are either shaken in a cocktail shaker or muddled at the bottom of a margarita glass. For more spice, add the seeds to the glass which enhances the kick.
How To Make A Spicy Margarita
- Fill cocktail shaker with ice, tequila, lime juice, triple sec, sour mix, and 2-3 slices of fresh jalapeños.
- Secure on the lid and shake vigorously. This releases the essence of the fresh jalapenos and flavors the drink. (If you don’t own cocktail shaker can also muddle jalapeño at bottom of glass.)
- Strain into a glass filled with ice and a salted rim, if desired. For this you can use kosher salt or coarse sea salt. I like to rim the glass with a lime wedge and then dip the glass onto a small plate with salt.
Making a Skinny Spicy Recipe
A traditional margarita uses sour mix to sweeten and add flavor. A skinny jalapeño margarita relies on lighter ingredients, while maintaining taste and flavor.
For a lighter version, I adapted my favorite skinny margarita recipe, using the same amount of freshly squeezed orange juice in place of the sour mix.
To add sweetness, add a touch of simple syrup or a low carb sweetener to keep calories at a minimum.
Is this cocktail very Spicy?
Even if you aren’t a fan of spicy food, I believe this cocktail can still be appealing and go down easy!
Spicy margaritas aren’t overwhelmingly so and add a great balance of flavor to the sweetness. If spicy is your thing, though, you can elevate the spiciness by adding more jalapeños, using a jalapeño-infused tequila, or rimming the glass with a combination of salt and cayenne pepper.
Adding Complementary Flavors
Give your cocktail extra boost of flavor with a variety of fresh fruits, herbs, and mix-ins to make it the best! Choose one, or a combination, to muddle with the jalapeños at the bottom of the margarita glass. The fruit may be fresh or frozen.
- Cucumber
- Pineapple
- Strawberry
- Mango
- Watermelon
- Fresh herbs – Cilantro, mint, basil, lemon verbena
Making a Frozen version
Yes, it is possible to make a frozen version, but there is a word of caution. Instead of shaking jalapeño slices with the ingredients to release its juices, it will be blended, which can really amp up the spiciness.
To tame the flavor, halve the jalapeños and remove the seeds, which is the source of a lot of its heat. Also add less jalapeños than you would if you were just shaking or muddling it into the drink.
Making a Pitcher
If serving a crowd, it is also possible to make a pitcher of spicy margaritas as well. To do this you’ll want to scale the recipe to make 6 cups, or 48 ounces. This will yield about 6-12 drinks, depending on the size of the glass.
- 1 jalapeno, sliced
- 2 cups tequila
- 2/3 cup lime juice (about 5-7 limes)
- 2/3 cup triple sec
- 2 cups sour mix
First muddle the jalapeno at the bottom of a pitcher. Add the other ingredients, mix well, and add ice. Serve with glasses of ice, rimmed with salt, and additional lime wedges.
Bonus expert Tips
- For an extremely quick and easy recipe prepare this Limeade Margarita, muddling peppers at the bottom of the glass.
- Make a skinny spicy cocktail by replacing sour mix with freshly squeezed orange juice and sweetening with a low carb sweetener.
- If you really want to amp up the spice, use habanero peppers (with caution!) or replace the tequila with a jalapeno-infused one. This can either be purchased or made at home.
- Rim the glass with coarse salt mixed with one of these spices to salt to amp up flavor – Tajin, chili powder, or cayenne pepper.
- Make flavored versions by muddling pineapple, strawberry, watermelon, mango, cucumber, or fresh herbs, such as cilantro, basil, or lemon verbena, with the jalapeños.
- Using a cocktail shaker releases the essence of the spicy pepper into the drink. Another option is to muddle them at the bottom of the margarita glass.
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How to Make a Spicy Margarita with Jalapeños (Easy)
Equipment Needed
Ingredients
- 2-3 slices fresh jalapeño
- 1 ½ ounces tequila
- ½ ounce fresh lime juice
- ½ ounce triple sec
- 1 ½ ounce sour mix (see recipe notes for other options)
- coarse salt, for glass rims
Instructions
- If you like a salt-rimmed glass, use a lime slice to wipe around the top of the glass and then turn over onto a plate filled with course salt. Fill glass with ice.
- Add all ingredients to a cocktail shaker and add a few cubes of ice. (If you don't have a cocktail shaker, muddle the jalapenos at the bottom of the glass and stir in other ingredients.)2-3 slices fresh jalapeño,1 ½ ounces tequila,½ ounce fresh lime juice,½ ounce triple sec,1 ½ ounce sour mix
- Shake cocktail shaker vigorously and strain into prepared glass. Garnish glass with lime slice.
Recipe Notes
Frozen Jalapeno Margaritas
It is possible to make a frozen version, but there is a word of caution. Instead of shaking the jalapeno to release the juices, it will be blended, which can really amp up the spiciness. To tame the flavor, halve the jalapeno and remove the seeds, which is the source of a lot of its heat. Also, add less jalapeno than you would if you were just shaking or muddling it into the drink.Making a Pitcher
This will yield about 6-12 drinks, depending on the size of the glass.- 1 jalapeno, sliced
- 2 cups tequila
- 2/3 cup lime juice (about 5-7 limes)
- 2/3 cup triple sec
- 2 cups sour mix
Nutrition
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