Container of lime juice with cut limes (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Lime-juicy drinks are really big on Cinco de Mayo (a mainly American-concocted holiday based on the Mexican victory over the French in Puebla in 1862–not Mexican Independence Day, which is September 16). And these kinds of cocktails are big all summer in Chicago. But, did you know you can use either vodka or tequila in many favorite recipes? Yes, you can. See below.
Compliments of Ketel One Vodka, here are a couple of vodka-infused limey cocktail recipes to try:
Dutch Margarita 1.25 oz. Ketel One Citroen
2 oz. margarita mix
.5 oz. fresh lime juice
Splash of Grand Marnier
Shake with ice in a cocktail shaker. Strain into a salt-rimmed rocks glass filled with ice. Garnish with a lime wedge.
Fancy Mexican Mule 1 ½ oz. Ketel One Vodka
½ oz. orange liqueur
½ oz. fresh lime juice
½ oz. ginger liqueur
3 oz. ginger beer
5 cilantro leaves
1 jalapeño slice (seedless)
Muddle cilantro and jalapeño in the bottom of mixing glass. Add Ketel One Vodka, orange liqueur, ginger liqueur and lime juice and shake with ice. Strain into a copper mug or highball glass filled with ice. Top with ginger beer. Garnish with cilantro leaves and a slice of jalapeño.
English: Classic margarita with Cointreau, good tequila and fresh lime juice (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
And now, a couple of tequila-based recipes for your pleasure:
The Margarita salt for rimming the glass (optional)
1 ½ oz. 1800 Silver (or other agave based tequila)
1 oz. fresh lime juice
½ oz. Cointreau (Triple Sec is less desirable)
If using salt, moisten the rim of the glass with a damp paper towel. Dip in salt. Fill the glass with ice; add tequila, lime juice, and Cointreau; and stir a few times until chilled. Serve immediately.
Fast Mexican Mule
1.5 oz. 1800 Silver tequila (or other agave based tequila)
3 oz. Ginger beer
Juice of half a lime
Combine all ingredients. Add ice; shake well and strain. Serve over ice in a highball glass. Garnish with a fresh lime wedge.
There are thousands of varieties of hot sauce (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
I became a fan of hot sauce late in life and am still a complete lightweight. But I got introduced a few years ago when I read a fascinating book called The Raw and the Cooked, by and about gourmand author Jim Harrison, who carried his own bottles of hot sauce with him everywhere he went.
I loved the book so much—and was so impressed with his passion for food and his ability to express it—I thought I’d try imitating the guy’s habit. Tried using some of his favorite, the original Cholula brand, at a Mexican restaurant and wasn’t thrilled. I figured maybe I’d like a different flavor, so I bought a bottle of Cholula chipotle-flavored hot sauce. It’s still sitting half-used on my shelf after several years. Just didn’t like the flavor or the way it so markedly changed the taste of my dish.
Then I learned from a Bon Appetit recipe for Bloody Marys about another type of hot sauce known as sriracha. Found it at the store, liked what I tasted. Looked for more ideas for using it—found dozens posted online by heavy duty fans of the stuff. And then I tried a recipe that has made this bright red sauce that comes in a Christmas-green-nozzle-top bottle a staple in my kitchen.
Sriracha and Tabanero lord it over Cholula at my house
Greek yogurt with sriracha – and a new favorite Tabanero
Here’s the recipe: Buy some sriracha. Put some sour cream in a dish. Start stirring in sriracha until the cream turns a lovely light orange-ish color—the darker the color, the spicier the dip. Now dip something in it—sliced cucumbers, steamed green beans or cauliflower, celery sticks, Doritos, potato chips, almost anything your heart desires. If you like spicy, there’s no way you won’t agree this is a heavenly way to dip. I’ve since switched to using 2% Greek yogurt for the sour cream and now feel quite virtuous that I’m taking in protein, calcium and “live yogurt cultures” at the same time I’m chowing down joyfully for my tastebuds. Mix with salsa for a nice switch. Use it on sandwiches or dip plain chicken in it. In case you prefer more sophisticated uses, here are some other popular ways to use sriracha.
Now, the news is I’ve found another one I like a lot. It’s called Tabanero hot sauce (the name is a combination of habanero, as in peppers, and Tabasco, the little spot in Mexico that grows peppers so well). But this is definitely NOT your grandmother’s Tabasco sauce. Its recipe sounds more like a real sauce—with carrots and onions, key lime juice, agave nectar, as well as habanero peppers, garlic salt, grapefruit seed extract and salt—labeled as all natural ingredients. I tried the medium-to-hot variety and it wasn’t too spicy for me. I was actually dipping my finger in it and tasting it all by itself. It has a clean, fresh taste and tastes like food.
And guess what? There’s no vinegar in it. I’ve just conducted a completely unscientific taste test with Tabanero, Cholula and sriracha. I now realize that part of why I don’t like the Cholula is the heavy vinegary taste—even though I like the taste of vinegar on its own. And lo and behold, the ingredients in Tabasco, too, are precisely: vinegar, red peppers and salt. Sriracha does have some vinegar, but it’s listed as the fifth ingredient and doesn’t overwhelm the chili flavor.
Okay, there is room in my heart and in my kitchen for two favorite hot sauces. I will probably never buy another bottle of Cholula (though it comes in many flavors and is very popular with Mexican food) or Tabasco (sorry, guys). Tabanero will be my new go-to sauce for Bloody Marys, but it might also get a turn in the yogurt dip once in a while. I’ll probably alternate Tabanero and sriracha for spicing up regular dishes that need a kick.
You can find sriracha hot chili sauce in most grocery stores and even in Targets with grocery areas. Get your bottle of Tabanero hot sauce ASAP—at this moment there are no retail outlets in Chicago (did you know there are such things as specialty hot sauce stores??), but you can order online. Then spice it up for National Hot Sauce Day–and keep your mouth and heart warmed up the rest of the year.
