This skinny spicy margarita recipe is made with fresh ingredients, rather than the pre-mixed mixers that are loaded with more sugar than needed. The sweetness from this cocktail comes from the orange liqueur and orange juice. We do not like our margaritas too sweet so we do not use any simple syrup in this cocktail. However, if you like it sweet you can add a few drops of agave syrup, or honey to sweeten it. If you add a 1/2 ounce of either honey or agave, it will add 43 calories to this cocktail. That STILL makes it an UNDER 300 calorie cocktail.

What you will need to make this skinny spicy margarita:

Tequila

To make this skinny margarita, you’ll need to know about tequila. Tequila is a type of liquor that’s made from the blue agave plant, which is native to Mexico.

The word “tequila” comes from an ancient Nahuatl word and means “sweat water.” It was originally given this name because when they were first distilled and bottled, they would sweat out in the hot Mexican climate!

You may have heard that there are two different kinds of tequila: blanco (white) and reposado (rested). Blanco is clear in color and has little flavor; reposado has been aged for at least two months in barrels made from American white oak trees but can be aged up to one year. If you want to try something different than your typical margarita then I recommend trying a blanco or reposado variety instead!

Lime Juice

To make lime juice from fresh limes, you can use the traditional method of squeezing whole limes with a citrus press or channel your inner bartender and use an electric juicer. If you opt for the latter option, be sure to remove any pulp before using it in your margarita.

Orange liqueur

Our preference for this skinny spicy margarita is Cointreau. After having tried several brands of orange liqueur, we have settled on this as our absolute go to. It has a smooth, not overly sweet flavor. It gives just the right hit of orange to any cocktail. In fact, many top bartenders do not use simple syrup in their margaritas.

Orange Juice

You can use either fresh or store-bought orange juice in this recipe. We prefer freshly squeezed. Trust us, it makes a difference. We always have oranges on hand at our house. When in season, look for Cara Cara oranges. Compared to other navel oranges, Cara Cara oranges are unique because they contain twenty percent more vitamin C and thirty percent more vitamin A. Cara Cara oranges are also a good source of dietary fiber, folate, potassium, and the carotenoid lycopene. They are seedless, and have such a gorgeous hue.

Jalapeño

Fresh jalapeños are the only way to go for this. Do not use the pickled kind. The spicy heat, plus the fresh taste of the pepper comes through in this cocktail.

Garnish

Garnishes can be as simple or as fancy as you want. Just a slice of lime will work. But, if you have de-hydrated oranges or limes, that gives a nice artsy feel for your cocktail. It also provides a place to rest the additional jalapeño slice.

Directions for crafting a Skinny Spicy Margarita

Fill a cocktail shaker with ice and add all the ingredients except garnish. Shake! Pour into a rocks glass. Garnish with a slice of citrus and a jalapeño slice. Cheers!

We hope you enjoy our Skinny Spicy Margarita recipe! Feel free to use different ratios of tequila and agave depending on how spicy you want your margarita. Also, if you don’t like lime juice or orange juice, feel free to substitute them with other fruits such as grapefruit or lemon. We hope that this recipe helps inspire new ways of making drinks at home.

Skinny Spicy Margarita

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Prep Time: 5 minutes minutes

Course: cocktails

Cuisine: Mexican

Keyword: margarita, skinny, spicy

Servings: 1 margarita

Calories: 216kcal

Author: Bruce and Dina Miller

Ingredients

• 2 ounces tequila
• 2 ounce lime juice
• 1/2 ounce orange liquor
• 1 ounce orange juice
• 2 slices fresh jalapeño seeds removed
• Ice

Garnish:

• 1 slice fresh jalapeño
• 1 dried or fresh orange slice

Instructions

• If you plan to have salt on the rim of your glass, prepare glass first. Simply run a lime wedge over the rim of a glass (we just do this on one side of the glass) and roll the rim in course salt. If you want it extra spicy, add a little tajin to your salt for flavor and heat.
• Muddle 2 slices of jalapeño in cocktail shaker. Add the rest of the cocktail ingredients to the shaker and shake vigorously while you count to 15.
• Add a large chunk of ice to glass, and strain cocktail over the ice. Add the slice of orange and jalapeño.

Nutrition

Serving: 1 | Calories: 216kcal | Carbohydrates: 14g | Protein: 1g | Fat: 0.3g | Saturated Fat: 0.1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 0.02g | Sodium: 5mg | Potassium: 315mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 474IU | Vitamin C: 115mg | Calcium: 26mg | Iron: 0.5mg

Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

Other cocktails to try:

Green Apple Martini Recipe

Strawberry Moscow Mule (Skinny!)

Mai Tai Cocktail