This simple drink is a classic around the world. The margarita didn’t originate on the tropical shores of Mexico, though. This may be where you’re likely to get a great margarita now, but this recipe originated in either the landlocked Mexican city of Puebla or in Texas. Cocktail buffs dispute the latter legend, but we’ll give you both versions and let you decide.

According to reliable expert bar-storians, bartender Danny Negrete created this famed drink to please his girlfriend, Margarita, who liked salt in her cocktails. However, some sources believe that Texas bartenders mixed up this beverage for the first time. These Texan tales vary in the details, but they all have one thing in common: The margarita was an experiment or a mistake. If this isn’t enough drama for you, feel free to go down the rabbit hole of margarita stories yourself. Wikipedia alone cites eight different origin theories.

We can’t solve the mystery of where the margarita originated, we can certainly tell you how to make one. We’ll teach you how to make a margarita mix cocktail, which is the easiest of all margarita recipes. And, for all the burgeoning mixologists out there, we’ll also show how to make traditional margarita recipes with triple sec, tequila, and lime.

Preparation time: 3 minutes

Cooking time: None

Total time: 3 minutes

Servings: 2

Ingredients

• 6 ounces of liquid margarita mix

• 3 ounces of tequila (blanco, also known as silver tequila, and reposado varieties work well)

• Ice

• Lime (for garnish)

• Coarse kosher salt (for garnish)

Preparation instructions

1. Start by rimming your cocktail glass with salt. Dip the rim of the glass in margarita mix, then dip in coarse sea salt. If you pour some salt onto a flat surface like a plate or cutting board, you’ll have better luck.

2. Shake up the margarita mix and tequila with plenty of ice.

3. Strain the drink into a cocktail glass over ice cubes and garnish with a lime wedge. Time to enjoy your cocktail.

Recipe adapted from Stirrings.

Brent Hofacker – stock.adobe.com

Variations

Chefs and bartenders never let a good recipe go to waste, and many spend time perfecting and tweaking them to their liking. The margarita is no exception.

There are countless varieties of margaritas out there, including ones that substitute tequila for other agave-based spirits like mezcal. Some experiment with every fruit juice under the sun, from strawberry to tamarind. Then, there are frozen margaritas, which are a slushier, cooler version of the original.

If you’re ready to put your own spin on this drink, read on for inspiration and pointers.

Frozen margarita recipe

Making a frozen margarita is simple. All you have to do is place the ingredients and plenty of ice into a blender and liquify. You’ll end up with a pitcher of margaritas that’s perfect for a hot summer afternoon. This preparation method is also great for parties because it’s easy to blend up a big batch.

Strawberry margarita recipe

Before we explain how to infuse this cocktail with a touch of strawberry flavor, we have to take one step back and show you how to make this drink without margarita mix. Margarita mix is very handy, but if you want to shake up a more traditional cocktail, you’ll need 1 ½ ounces of reposado or blanco tequila, 1 ounce of triple sec (or Cointreau), and a three-quarter ounce of fresh lime juice. This isn’t much harder than a recipe with mix, and it’s a bit boozier, seeing as it contains triple sec orange liqueur.

To make it strawberry, add the ingredients to a blender instead of a cocktail shaker and liquify with 3-5 strawberries (stems removed). Before pouring the liquid into your cocktail glass, skim off any foam at the top of the drink. You can easily make this version frozen, too, by adding ice to the blender.  

Spicy jalepeño margarita recipe

For this variety, you can start with either a classic margarita recipe or one containing mix. Once you’ve combined the ingredients in a cocktail shaker, add in some sliced jalapeño peppers and let them infuse the drink for 15 minutes before shaking and straining into a cocktail glass.

Proceed with caution. The heat of jalapeños varies, and if you don’t want a jalapeño margarita that’s too spicy to drink, start with a small quantity and scale up. We also recommend removing the seeds from the peppers because they contain highly concentrated spiciness. They don’t look good in a finished drink, either.

Be careful not to touch your face after handling hot peppers.

Other margarita mix drinks

If you’re left with extra ingredients from a summer pool party and you’re wondering what to mix with margarita mix, don’t despair. Margarita mix, which is limey and sweet, is a great addition to other cocktails as well. You can make a lime-forward mint julep or add a dash of the mix to homemade lemonade. There’s no rule about not adding margarita mix to other traditionally citrusy cocktails like lemon drop martinis, so go all out.

A margarita shot

This preparation of the drink skips the “rocks.” Combine all of the ingredients in a traditional margarita in a shaker with ice and, instead of straining into a margarita glass, strain the cold liquid into a large shot glass (you can scale down the ratios if you think this is too much liquid for the glasses you have on your bar). You can make a salt rim on the shot glass if much as you would on a regular cocktail glass. Shoot the drink back instead of sipping it. Remember that this preparation has just as much booze in it as the original drink.

fahrwasser – stock.adobe.com

If you celebrate “margarita miercoles” in your home as a pick-me-up in the middle of the week, then you should definitely keep some margarita mix on hand. Gopuff is here to help. Order the margarita mix right from your phone, finish up that last hour of work, and get ready for at-home happy hour.