Culinary Explorer
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Classic Margarita
Created by Chef Dean
A properly balanced margarita built on quality tequila, bracingly fresh lime juice, and just enough orange liqueur to smooth the edges. No sour mix. No frozen slush. Just honest ingredients shaken cold.
The margarita is America's most popular cocktail, and also its most abused. Somewhere along the way, the drink got buried under electric-green sour mix, cheap tequila, and enough sugar to mask both. This is a rescue operation.
A proper margarita contains exactly three essential elements: tequila, fresh lime juice, and orange liqueur. The ratio matters. Too much lime and it puckers. Too much sweetness and it cloys. Get it right and you've created something greater than the sum of its parts, a drink that hits bright and citrusy on the tongue before the agave warmth settles in.
The origins are disputed. Some credit a Tijuana bartender in the 1930s, others a socialite in Acapulco, still others a Dallas restaurateur. What matters is that the margarita became the bridge between Mexican cantina culture and American cocktail bars. It belongs to both nations now.
Ingredients
blanco tequila (100% agave)
Quantity
2 ounces
fresh lime juice
Quantity
1 ounce
freshly squeezed
Cointreau or quality triple sec
Quantity
3/4 ounce
| Ingredient | Quantity |
|---|---|
| blanco tequila (100% agave) | 2 ounces |
| fresh lime juicefreshly squeezed | 1 ounce |
| Cointreau or quality triple sec | 3/4 ounce |
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