There’s one seasonal cocktail recipe we look forward to all year long, and it’s this one. We’re going as far as to say spicy watermelon margaritas are better than classic margaritas. There. We said it. Puréed watermelon mellows out the sourness of the limes without getting into that cloyingly sweet territory. We recommend working with a baby variety of melon to end up with about 2 cups of fresh juice, which will make 8 margaritas. Not required but highly recommended: Blend all the ingredients with 1 cup of ice for frozen margs.
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Spicy Watermelon Margarita
Ingredients
Scale
Chili Salt
- 1 part kosher salt
- 1 part Aleppo pepper or chili powder
Watermelon Juice
- 1 baby watermelon, cubed
Margarita
- 2 ounces watermelon juice
- 1 ounce tequila
- 3/4 ounce lime juice
- 1/4 ounce agave or simple syrup
- 1 jalapeño or serrano pepper, thinly sliced, plus more for garnish (optional)
- Lime wheels or wedges for garnish (optional)
Instructions
- Combine equal parts salt and Aleppo pepper on a small plate. Rub rim of an old-fashioned or rocks glass with lime wedge and then dip in salt mixture.
- Purée watermelon cubes in a blender until smooth. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a large measuring glass.
- In a cocktail shaker, add 2-3 jalapeño rounds and muddle. Then, add watermelon juice, tequila, lime juice, and agave. Fill shaker with ice, cover, and shake vigorously until outside of shaker is very cold, about 20 seconds. Strain cocktail into prepared glass. Garnish with reserved lime wheel.
Notes
- The juice of one baby watermelon will yield about 2 cups of juice, which will make about 8 margaritas.
- Make it a frozen margarita by blending all the ingredients with 1 cup of ice.
- If you don’t have agave or simple syrup, substitute 3/4 ounce Cointreau or orange liquor.