I recently threw a “Breakfast for Dinner” party at my home. While we had lots of bubbly and orange juice to make Mimosas, it just wouldn’t have been right without a good Bloody Mary.
The Bloody Mary has been reinvented so many times and so many ways. It now includes lots of different ingredients and flavors, depending on who is making it. And because of this…I love it.
The best, best, best Bloody Mary I have ever had was when we were staying at the beautiful Sheraton Kauai Resort on PoiPu Beach in Hawaii. I was 3 months pregnant and as nauseated as one could imagine. We were having dinner in one of their outdoor restaurants or bars and I was craving something salty, food was not doing it for me. I ordered a Virgin Bloody Mary and OMG, it had the most amazing flavor. Salty, smoky and full of flavor. It’s all I drank for the rest of our stay. I have been trying to recreate that Bloody Mary for the past 12 years. I’m close with this one.
Bloody Mary’s look great in wide mouth mason jars. There is room for the big celery stick and the glass is easy to fill with ice. I dipped the rims of the mason jars in lime juice and then I dipped them in some Hawaiian finishing salts (a nod to my best Bloody from Hawaii). You can use any type of salt for the rim, just make sure it’s chunky. A mixture of a large flaked salt and celery salt or Old Bay would also be a good choice.
Have your army of glasses ready to go before your guests arrive. If I am having a large group over, I make the Bloody Mary mix up the day before and keep it chilled. I also chill the vodka, the pitchers I am going to use and the mason jars. These drinks need to be cold and you don’t want your ice melting quickly and watering everything down.
My Bloody Mary’s get served on a plate with some skewered pepper bacon and a skewer of tater tots. Have you ever dipped tater tots in a Bloody Mary? You should try it. It’s kind of like a meal. A pepperoni stick would be another epic addition.
I threaded the bacon on the skewer before baking it in a 375 degree F oven on a wire rack for 15-20 minutes. I baked the tater tots on a baking sheet and threaded them on the skewer once they were done. I kept the bacon and the tater tots warm in a 200 degree F oven until I served them with the drinks.
The Best Bloody Mary Ever
Ingredients
- 3 cups V8 juice
- 3 ounces freshly squeezed lime juice (about 4 limes)
- 1-1/2 ounces freshly squeezed lemon juice (about 1-2 lemons)
- 2 Tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
- 1/2 teaspoon prepared horseradish
- 2 teaspoons Tabasco
- 1 teaspoon Old Bay Seasoning
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1 cup vodka
- Garnish with celery stalks, bacon and tater tots
Directions
- Combine all ingredients except for the vodka in a large, non-reactive container and mix well. Cover and refrigerate and let the flavors meld, overnight is best but not more than 24 hours. Add vodka a couple hours before serving and keep refrigerated.
- Pour into mason jars filled with ice and celery stalks. Serve with bacon and tater tots on the side.
I hope you give these a try. they are perfect for Sunday afternoon football parties and even for that early holiday gathering.
Gerry says
There’s no recipe for the Bloody Mary actually in the article!!!!
Cathy says
Sorry, fixed now.
Gerry says
Thank you – looks yummy. We always have a house full, usually beginning the day before thanksgiving so early morning cocktails are just the ticket –
Melissa says
I make these all the time! By far my favorite Bloody Mary and I can make it at home. I garnish with just olives but so delicious
Teresa says
I can’t find the recipe. You have me intrigued with trying a new, better drink.
Teresa
Cathy says
Fixed!
Branch says
Cathy, perhaps I have early morning “Bloody Mary Recipe Blindness”, but I’m unable to locate the actual recipe for your Bloody Mary in this post. Where should I look?
Cathy says
Ah yes, the details! Fixed!
Barbie with a T says
Maybe I should have one of these for breakfast to help me through these rough days. I probably would have more Hospice volunteers sharing in my care too. đŸ™‚
Cathy says
Barbie I’m so sorry.I’d be there in a second if I could.
Kelly says
And now this is all I can think about! Yum! Looks perfect.
katie says
ummm this sounds heavenly! The best bloody mary I ever had was in New Orleans. Super spicy and lots of flavor. I was never a bloody mary drinker until that day I had it in NOLA… now I’m hooked and constantly on the search for one that is even better than the one I had in NOLA. Definitely giving this recipe a try soon.
Jackie says
Believe it or not, I’ve never had a Bloody Mary–this definitely inspires me to try one!
Stacy McGrath says
Same here, gotta try this one out when I get the chance.
Cesar says
Holy mole! Steve loves a good bloody mary so maybe making the best bloody mary ever will earn my some points. Thanks!
Betty Fitzgerald says
I’ve been looking for just the right Bloody Mary to make me a believer. I think this is it!!
leslie says
A bacon and tater tot garnish….your genius Cathy!
Kelly @foodiefresh says
I’m a huge fan of bloody marys and this one sounds fantastic. I’m throwing a brunch baby shower in January and might have to recreate this for the bloody mary bar. đŸ™‚
BloodyMary Lovah says
Or……. You could just use Fat & Juicy bloody Mary mix ….. Just sayin’
WWFeldman says
That’s so close to the recipe I came up with on my long Bloody Mary quest. Gotta have the horseradish and the lime. I don’t do the Old Bay or sugar but I’ll have to give them a try.
I think that the one thing that really surprised me was how much brighter Bloody Mary’s were when I ditched the V-8 and went with straight tomato juice. Just my humble biased Bloody Mary opinion for what it’s worth.
Debra says
I just made a batch to meld in the refrigerator, but I won’t be waiting 24 hours! Gonna have one before we head over to Thanksgiving dinner.
Debra says
These are so yummy! I will amaze our camping group next month.
susan says
A Bloody Mary with Bacon? This has my vote. I am going to make these for my family Hannukah party!
Lori Fredrich (@Burp_Blog) says
I’m a big fan of the bloody mary, and this recipe looks like a winner. Horseradish is a prerequisite in all of my favorite bloodies đŸ˜‰ And the bacon is a bonus.
Gretchen says
OMG!!! My husband and I stayed at the Sheraton in Kauai several years ago and loved the Bloody Mary’s they served at pool side. We have been judging all Bloody Mary’s to theirs and nobody even comes close. I’m having an Ester brunch and will be serving your recipe. I’m so excited. I will let you know how my guest like them. Also I like your idea of serving them in the mason jars.
Barbara Hansen says
I think you should add a deviled egg to round out breakfast!
Andi says
You are missing dill sauce or Elixir Juice… they are kind of hard to find!
Anne Hughes says
What are the Mason jars rimmed with?
Cathy says
A spicy pepper I had in the pantry, you can use whatever you choose.
Robert Schneider says
My “Korean” Bloody Marys include the usual mixer (homemade from fresh tomatoes, garlic, green onions, Cajun spice, horse radish, celery salt, Tabasco and Worcestershire AND [instead of Rotel tomatoes and green chilis] kimchi), garnished with shrimp, bacon, garlic- and jalapeño-stuffed olives, Clausen dill pickle spears and celery. These things are yummy goodness!
Karen says
I am not a fan of V8. Could I use tomato juice?
Cathy says
You can, it just won’t be The Best Bloody Mary:).
Kirstin Rau says
Love your blog and have made many of your recipes. Hubby and I have bloody Mary’s every Sunday morning. The addition of tater tots is brilliant! I must say that my husband has the ultimate winner in bloody Mary’s and we would welcome you to our home whenever you are in the Denver area so we could swap recipes and ideas. Anyone who love the “divine swine” as you is always welcome here!
Sean says
In Canada we call these Caesars. They’re made with Clamato juice (a commercial mix of clam and tomato juice), Tobasco, vodka, a pickled bean or pickled asparagus as a garnish and rimmed with celery salt. Salty, spicy and a litte glass of “red heaven”.
poochee says
Bloodys are made with mostly all the same ingredients,but if you add LOVE AND A GREAT Attitude with a pinch of atmosphere,there you have it a spectacular Bloody Mary!
norm brown says
I make my bloody mary with v8, I call it the crazy 8
PatienceFalk says
Love this! Served it at a New’s Brunch and it was a huge hit!
Michele says
The recipe is very well balanced-I reduced the volumes to do a taste try for a single drink with reduced sodium V-8 juice. My opinion was this recipe will be perfect with celery salt. I added 1/2 tsp. per 6oz V-8 juice
Tony C says
The mix is very similar to Bloody Caeser mix, minus the Old Bay seasoning.
And that’s a good thing !!
Melissa says
My favorite and go to Bloody Mary recipe
Cathy says
Yay!
Robin says
Fantastic. I wouldn’t change a thing. Perfectly balanced, thank you for a wonderful recipe
Cathy says
Glad you enjoyed it.
Ken says
I’m a bit sad that bloody Mary recipes on the internet for some strange reason give enough directions for feeding an army when all I want is one simple mixed drink.
I started by scaling it down and added the vodka first then proceeded from the beginning with one cup of v8, etc…..UNTIL I got to the horse radish. By then I forgot that I scaled down thus I continued with 2tsp TABASCO, ETC. Man, I got such the kick from that. I’m just glad that I forgot to scale down the sugar also since that kind of levels it out. đŸ˜† lol