Spicy Hatch chile margaritas made with fresh lime juice, muddled fresh chile, and a smoky Hatch chile infused simple syrup is the perfectly balanced spicy margarita you’re craving this August!
We made it to Friday! I’m rounding out Hatch chile week here on Lively Table with a spicy Hatch chile margarita, because what kind of celebration would it be without a cocktail?
This delicious margarita recipe comes from my Aunt Lorri and my cousin Eric, who are the ultimate margarita connoisseur, and an award-winning mixologist, respectively. So you know it’s good.
Why You’ll Love These Hatch Chile Margaritas
We can all agree that the only way to make a margarita is with real, fresh squeezed lime juice, right? Beyond that, the simple syrup is what makes these Hatch chile margaritas stand out. A less sweet, raw sugar simple syrup infused with fresh Hatch chile, cinnamon, star anise, and black peppercorns brings a unique, delicious flavor to the party. These hatch chile margaritas are perfectly balanced with tart lime, smoky spice, and just the right amount of heat for a margarita so smooth, it’s dangerous.
How To Make The Hatch Chile Simple Syrup
This is the most important step, so don’t skip it!
- Place the sugar, hatch chile, star anise, cardamom, cinnamon, peppercorns, bay leaves, coriander, and water in a saucepan.
- Bring to a boil, then remove from the heat. Cover the pan and let it steep for about an hour.
- Strain the syrup into a glass jar and refrigerate until ready to use.
How To Make Hatch Chile Margaritas
- Muddle a bit of fresh Hatch chile in the bottom of a shaker. Add ice, lime juice, tequila and simple syrup.
- Shake and strain into glasses filled with ice. Enjoy!
Tips For Making The Best Margaritas
- For a finishing touch, wet the rims of the glasses before adding ice and coat with ground cinnamon and/or smoked salt.
- Fresh-squeezed lime juice is always key! You can squeeze it a few hours in advance, but no more than a day as lime juice will lose flavor as it sits.
- Quality tequila is important for flavor and for avoiding a headache! I like reposado in this recipe, but a good silver tequila works too.
- For a clear/pale green color, use regular white sugar in the simple syrup and silver tequila.
- You can usually purchase whole spices in the bulk spice section at many grocery stores to avoid having to buy large containers of each.
- If you’d like to make a pitcher, go for it! You just need equal parts tequila, simple syrup and lime juice. One recipe of simple syrup makes about 1 1/2 cups, so double the recipe if needed.
- Not Hatch chile season? Use anaheim peppers or fresh jalapeños.
A big thank you to my Aunt Lorri for sharing her top shelf Hatch chile margarita recipe with us!
Did you make this recipe? Please leave a star rating in the comments!
PrintSpicy Hatch Chile Margaritas
Spicy Hatch chile margaritas made with fresh lime juice, muddled fresh chile, and a smoky Hatch chile infused simple syrup is the perfectly balanced spicy margarita you’re craving this August!
- Prep Time: 15 min
- Cook Time: 5 min
- Total Time: 20 minutes
- Yield: 2 margaritas 1x
- Category: cocktail
- Method: stovetop
- Cuisine: Mexican
Ingredients
For the hatch chile simple syrup:
- 1 cup sugar (I used raw sugar)
- 1 ½ cups of water
- 3 star anise pods
- 10 whole green cardamom pods
- 1 3” cinnamon stick
- 25 whole back peppercorns
- 3 bay leaves
- 15 whole coriander seeds
- 1 hatch chile, halved (leave the seeds and pith for added heat!)
For the margaritas:
- 3–4 small (about 1 inch) pieces raw hatch chile
- 4 oz quality tequila (silver or reposado)
- 4 oz freshly squeezed and strained lime juice
- 4 oz hatch chile simple syrup
- ice
Instructions
For the hatch chile symple syrup:
- Place all of the ingredients for the simple syrup in a saucepan on the stove and bring to a quick boil. Remove from heat and allow the ingredients to steep for an hour or so. Strain the cooled syrup through a fine strainer to a glass container.
For the Margaritas:
- Optional: wet the rims of 2 glasses and dip in ground cinnamon and/or smoked salt.
- Muddle the fresh hatch chili in the bottom of a cocktail shaker.
- Add ice to the shaker and 2 ounces each of simple syrup, fresh lime juice, and tequila.
- Shake vigorously and strain into the rimmed glasses filled with ice.
Notes
- Store simple syrup in an airtight container in the refrigerator, up to 5 days.
- Not Hatch chile season? Use anaheim peppers or jalapeños instead.
- This margarita has a dark color due to the raw sugar in the simple syrup and tequila reposado. If you want a more traditional (clear/pale green) look, use white sugar in the simple syrup and tequila blanco.
- Fresh-squeezed lime juice is always key! You can squeeze it a few hours in advance, but no more than a day as lime juice will lose flavor as it sits.
- Quality tequila is important for flavor and for avoiding a headache! I like reposado in this recipe, but a good silver tequila (tequila blanco) works too.
Keywords: hatch chile margaritas, spicy margaritas with hatch chile, spicy skinny margarita
I can not WAIT to try these margaritas! We love sipping on room temperature Ancho Reyes® (ancho chile infused liqueur). I still haven’t mastered making this at all! I’m so anxious in hopes your simple syrup recipe will provide the missing links Ü Thanks so much!
You must be disappointed with from scratch Rita’s in restaurants with such a concoction like this one…can’t wait to try…cheers.
I sure am most of the time. I have found 2 restaurants where I live where I will drink a margarita, but that’s it! Enjoy!
Best family and best margaritas ever! Great guest post, Aunt Lorri!
Definitely, Christie!