The salted tomato margarita is earthy, savory, and refreshingly unexpected. This bold margarita blends smoky mezcal with homemade tomato syrup, fresh lime juice, and a splash of sherry for depth and complexity. Finished with fresh ground black pepper, it’s a cocktail that blurs the line between garden-fresh and deeply complex—perfect for adventurous palates.
I know at first this drink may sounds lightly odd. If you think about it though, tomatoes are technically a fruit, and can be quite sweet when ripe. The tomato flavor is really mellowed by the smoky mezcal and the sherry and it all blends together very smoothly.
My husband and both my sons really liked this drink and I loved it too. It was different than the usual cocktails and enjoyable and fun to drink. It is definitely a summer drink to make when you can find a good, ripe tomato. If you grow your own, even better! Check out my recipe for mango mezcal margaritas or cara cara mezcal margaritas with smoked paprika for some other tasty mezcal margarita variations.
Salted Tomato Margarita
Ingredients
For the tomato syrup:
- 150 g ripe tomato this was about 1 2/3 ripe roma tomatoes
- 150 g sugar 3/4 cup
- 1 tsp kosher salt
For the drink:
- 1 oz mezcal
- 1 oz manzanilla sherry
- 3/4 oz tomato syrup
- 3/4 oz lime juice
- salt and pepper for topping
Instructions
- To make the syrup. Chop up the tomato and macerate it with the sugar and salt. Let it sit at room temp overnight, then blend with a stick blender and strain to get the syrup.
- Combine the ingredients in a cocktail shaker with ice and shake until very cold. Serve over ice topped with a little salt and pepper sprinkle to taste.