Three ingredients are all you need to make this outstanding margarita with agave as its sweetener. Perfectly balanced and refreshing, this agave margarita recipe will be your new favorite patio drink.
Agave Margarita Recipe
Few things are more relaxing than hanging out on an outdoor patio, with a refreshing beverage in hand. Whether it’s brunch in the sun or dinner under the stars, having the perfect cocktail helps set the tone for what’s to come.
Related: Mezcal Margarita
It could be that a cosmopolitan drink is your party beverage of choice or maybe it’s a simple lemon drop. However, there are certain times, especially when it’s warm and Mexican food is on the menu that nothing, but an agave margarita will do.
This particular hibiscus margarita is actually an all-time favorite. Being a stickler for a balanced tasting cocktail, I find the sweet-tart ratios for this particular margarita to be right on the money!
What Is Agave Nectar?
Agave nectar (it’s really a syrup, nectar being a marketing term) comes directly from the fluid of a succulent, known as the blue agave plant. This same plant is what is used to make tequila (another reason agave pairs so well with tequila in margarita recipes).
Agave nectar is often compared with honey, albeit agave is a bit thinner in viscosity. When it comes to flavor, agave is a bit sweeter than sugar and more similar to honey taste-wise. Most importantly it lacks the sometimes bitter aftertaste artificial sweeteners tend to have.
Ingredients
Pantry Ingredients
- tequila – the favorite for this recipe is Patron Silver. This is premium tequila made from 100% agave and produced in a small batch system. It’s also very easy to find. Casamigos tequila also works perfectly.
- light agave nectar – make sure you’re using light agave vs. amber, which has a more intense taste
- kosher salt – the perfect crystalline structure for a salted rim
Fresh Ingredients
- fresh lime juice – make sure it’s fresh and not the bottled stuff
If you’ve noticed…triple sec has been purposefully left out of this recipe. You can add it if you like, but I do not prefer it in any of my cocktails.
How To Make This Recipe
Step One: Run a slice of lime around the edges of (preferably chilled) rocks glasses.
Step Two: Pour margarita salt or kosher salt onto a small dish. Press the rim of the glasses into the salt to coat the edges.
Step Three: Fill a cocktail shaker with ice.
Step Four: Add tequila, fresh lime juice and agave nectar to the shaker. Cover and shake for at least 30 seconds until ingredients are mixed and chilled.
Step Five: Fill prepared rocks glasses with lots of ice and pour margarita over the top.
When To Shake, When To Stir…
When you shake a cocktail, you’re increasing its convection, aerating it and changing its texture.
Shaking is recommended when a cocktail’s ingredient list calls for juice (unless carbonated), citrus or any dairy. For a margarita specifically, shaking with ice not only chills the drink and blends the ingredients completely, it also introduces the tiny air bubbles that give a margarita its cloudy, frothy, and delicious appearance.
Stirring a cocktail is the preferred method of preparation when you don’t want to dilute, over-cool or change the texture of a drink.
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Equipment Needed
- While using kosher salt for the glass rims is fine, I love using a lime flavored margarita salt.
- Because this margarita is shaken, you will need a cocktail shaker, with a tightly fitting lid.
- The BEST recommendation I have for all cocktail making that includes citrus, is this citrus press. I squeezed six limes to get a half a cup of lime juice for this cocktail. When done by hand, it takes about ten limes to get the same amount of juice. This is my most used gadget in the kitchen.
More Margarita Recipes
Agave Margarita
Ingredients
- margarita salt or kosher salt
- 1 cup really good silver tequila (I prefer Patron)
- 1/2 cup fresh lime juice
- 1 tbsp light colored agave nectar
- ice
- lime wedges for garnish
Instructions
- Run a slice of lime around the edges of (preferably chilled) rocks glasses. Pour margarita salt or kosher salt onto a small dish. Press the rim of the glasses into the salt to coat the edges.
- Fill a cocktail shaker with ice.
- Add tequila, fresh lime juice and agave nectar to the shaker. Cover and shake for at least 30 seconds until ingredients are mixed and chilled.
- Fill prepared rocks glasses with lots of ice and pour margarita over the top.
Nutrition
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