This Strawberry Margarita recipe has the purest, brightest strawberry flavor possible, thanks to an easy-to-make fresh strawberry puree. With just a few ingredients, this drink is fruity, tart, and sweet – the perfect refreshing summer cocktail!
The Best Fresh Strawberry Margarita
This Strawberry Margarita recipe is an extra beautiful way to enjoy an in-season summertime cocktail. With an easy-to-make fresh strawberry puree, it has the purest, brightest strawberry flavor possible – no funky bottled mixers here!
So grab some summer strawberries, in all their sweet and fragrant glory. I’m going to show you how to make a strawberry margarita that’s so pretty and delicious, you’ll wonder how your summers ever got along without one!
What You’ll Need
There are just 3 ingredients in the strawberry puree, plus another 3 ingredients for the margarita. Scroll down to the recipe card for exact measurements.
For the Fresh Strawberry Puree
- Strawberries – Fresh strawberries give us the fruity, strawberry flavor in the syrup. Berries that are perfectly sweet and fragrant will give you the most delicious strawberry flavor. See the variations below about frozen strawberries.
- Water – Water provides the liquid base for the simple syrup.
- Sugar – To sweeten the puree.
For The Strawberry Margarita
- Tequila – I prefer blanco tequila in fruit flavored margaritas. Its clean flavor lets the fruit shine. But if reposado is your favorite, feel free to use that.
- Lime juice – Freshly squeezed lime juice is essential for making the best margarita. It adds a bright, tart acidity to the cocktail.
- Orange liqueur – Orange liqueur is a common ingredient in a classic margarita, and adds a slight orange citrus flavor. Feel free to use Triple Sec, Cointreau, or Grand Marnier, whatever you like or have on hand.
- Strawberry puree
How to Make Strawberry Puree
A fresh strawberry puree is the fruity base for this margarita recipe. It’s incredibly easy to make!
- Blend. Using an immersion blender or high speed blender, blend the strawberries, water, and sugar together until completely smooth. That’s it!!
How to Make a Strawberry Margarita on the Rocks
And now let’s get this cocktail into a glass!
- Combine the ingredients. Add the tequila, orange liqueur, strawberry puree, and lime juice to a cocktail shaker.
- Shake. Add ice to the shaker, cover it tightly, and shake vigorously for 45 seconds. This will perfectly chill and dilute the drink.
- Pour. Strain the margarita into a rocks glass with ice.
- Garnish. Add a fresh strawberry and a sprig of mint for garnish. ENJOY!
Tips & Variations
Here are a few of my best tips and variations when making this strawberry margarita recipe:
- Can I use frozen strawberries? You could swap the fresh strawberries for frozen if that’s what you have on hand. Just let them thaw before blending.
- I don’t like strawberry seeds in my drink. Now what? I personally love to see the strawberry seeds in my drink, thus I never strain. If you don’t feel the same way, simply pour the strawberry puree through a strainer and discard the seeds.
- Can I use other berries? Yes – just swap the strawberries for an equal amount of raspberries, blackberries, etc.
- Add a salted rim. Margaritas are known for their salted rims, and I happen to really enjoy its flavor and texture. Plus, it’s pretty! To add salt, fill a small bowl with water and another small bowl with coarse salt. Dip the rim of your glass into the water and then into the salt. Or run the cut edge of a lime around the rim and then dip the rim into the bowl of salt.
- Don’t want your margarita quite as strong? Use a larger glass and top off the margarita with chilled sparkling water (like Topo Chico).
- Want your drink more tart? Then squeeze in some extra lime and add a lime wedge for garnish.
- Or maybe you prefer more sweetness? If your strawberries aren’t especially sweet, or if you simply like a sweeter drink, add more sugar to the puree. Or stir in some simple syrup, agave syrup, or honey.
- Try a different kind of alcohol. Not really a fan of tequila? This strawberry cocktail is also wonderful with rum, gin, or vodka!
- Add some heat. If you check out some of my other cocktails, you’ll notice I like to add some jalapeno here and there. If you like heat, muddle a slice or two of fresh jalapeno into this drink. It’s pretty wonderful!
- Use other herbs. I love to use my herb garden during the summer. You could easily swap out the mint in this drink with sprigs of thyme or basil.
Serving Suggestions
So here goes. This is my favorite way to drink a strawberry margarita…
- I prefer my strawberry margarita on the rocks. I LOVE ice. But I don’t like it blended with my margarita. It’s just a little too “college life” for me.
- 99% of the time, I rim my glass with coarse salt.
- And 50% of the time, I muddle a couple slices of fresh jalapeno into my margarita. I just can’t help myself!
- And I always, always, ALWAYS garnish. Homemade cocktails are so easy and fun to make, it’d be a shame to not finish the job! For this particular margarita, I like to add whole or sliced strawberries and a sprig of mint. And if I’m feeling extra tart, I squeeze another big fat lime wedge over the finished drink and plop the wedge into the glass. Perfection!
Can I Make This Ahead of Time?
It’s easy to prep this drink ahead of time. Just make the strawberry puree up to a few hours in advance of serving and store it in the fridge in a covered container. Prep your glasses (if making salted rims). And get your garnishes ready, and store in the fridge.
When it’s time to serve, proceed with the recipe instructions.
Can I Make This Into a Pitcher?
This cocktail is easy to make into a pitcher!
You will first need to double the strawberry puree portion, which should give you 2 cups of finished puree. Add the strawberry puree to a pitcher, followed by 1½ cups tequila, ¾ cup lime juice, and ¾ cup orange liqueur. Stir to combine and refrigerate for up to 4 hours prior to serving.
When ready to serve, give the pitcher a good stir. Fill a cocktail shaker with ice and pour in 6½ ounces of the margarita mix. Shake 45 seconds to perfectly chill and dilute. Strain the margarita into an ice-filled glass and garnish with a fresh strawberry and sprig of mint. Repeat with remaining margarita mix.
If you want to use glasses with salted rims, they can be prepared ahead of time as well.
More Margarita Recipes
- Spicy Cucumber Margarita
- Ranch Water – AKA my “skinny margarita”!
- Pink Lemonade Margarita
- Prosecco Margaritas – so fun with bubbles!!
- Blueberry Margarita
- Rhubarb Margarita
- Pineapple Jalapeno Margarita
- Jalapeno Mezcal Margarita – for those of you who like a hint of smoky flavor
- Orange Margarita
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Strawberry Margarita
Ingredients
For the Strawberry Puree (enough for 2 margaritas)
- 1 cup diced fresh strawberries
- ¼ cup water
- 2 teaspoons granulated sugar
For the Margarita
- 2 ounces blanco tequila
- 3 ounces strawberry puree
- 1 ounce freshly squeezed lime juice
- 1 ounce orange liqueur
Instructions
- For the strawberry puree: Using an immersion blender or high speed blender, blend strawberries, water, and sugar together until completely smooth.
- For the margarita: Fill a rocks glass with ice.
- Add tequila, strawberry puree, lime juice, and orange liqueur to a cocktail shaker. Add ice and shake 45 seconds to combine, plus perfectly chill and dilute.
- Strain margarita into prepared glass and garnish with a fresh strawberry and sprig of mint. For additional lime tartness, squeeze a lime wedge over the top and plop the wedge into the glass. Enjoy immediately.
Notes
Nutrition Information:
What would be the best way to make this non-alcoholic?
Simply leave out the alcohol. I’d suggest adding a bit of club soda for something fun. We also like to add in some lime or lemon flavored San Pellegrino: https://www.sanpellegrinofruitbeverages.com/us/beverages/fruit/limone-menta
5 stars