Frozen Strawberry Margarita
This frozen strawberry margarita is a five-ingredient blended cocktail that tastes like a boozy strawberry slushie — frosty, tart, and ready in about five minutes.
Prep
5 min
Cook
N/A
Total
5 min
Servings
4 servings
Ingredients
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Instructions
- 1
Rim your glasses first. Run a lime wedge around the rim of each glass, then dip into a shallow plate of salt or sugar. Set the glasses aside while you blend.
- 2
Add the strawberries and ice to a blender. Drop in the hulled strawberries and ice cubes. Pulse a few times to break everything down into rough chunks.
- 3
Pour in the tequila, triple sec, and lime juice. Add the simple syrup starting with 2 tablespoons. Blend on high for 30–45 seconds until the mixture is completely smooth and slushy with no visible ice chunks or strawberry pieces.
- 4
Taste and adjust. This is the most important step. Dip a spoon in — if it's too tart, add another tablespoon of simple syrup. If it's too thick, splash in a little more lime juice or a tablespoon of water. Blend again briefly.
- 5
Pour into rimmed glasses and serve immediately. The texture is best right out of the blender — thick, frosty, and pourable. Garnish with a fresh strawberry or lime wheel.
Used in this recipe: Full-Size Blender Citrus Juice Press (Amazon, affiliate links)
Nutrition (per serving)
190 kcal
Calories
1g
Protein
18g
Carbs
0g
Fat
3g
Fiber
10mg
Sodium
A frozen strawberry margarita is fresh strawberries, ice, blanco tequila, orange liqueur and lime juice blended into a frosty, slushy drink. There is no premade mix involved, and the whole thing takes about 5 minutes and makes 4 drinks. The key step is tasting and adjusting the sweetness and thickness before you pour, since strawberry ripeness varies a lot.
Ingredients
For the margaritas (serves 4):
- 1 pound fresh strawberries, hulled (about 3½ cups) — ripe, deeply red berries make the biggest difference here
- 1½ cups ice cubes
- ½ cup tequila (blanco works best for a clean flavor)
- ¼ cup triple sec or Cointreau
- ¼ cup fresh lime juice (about 2–3 limes)
- 2–3 tablespoons simple syrup or agave nectar, to taste
For the rim (optional):
- Coarse salt, sugar, or a mix of both
- Lime wedge for rimming and garnish
How To Make It
- Rim your glasses first. Run a lime wedge around the rim of each glass, then dip into a shallow plate of salt or sugar. Set the glasses aside while you blend.
- Add the strawberries and ice to a blender. Drop in the hulled strawberries and ice cubes. Pulse a few times to break everything down into rough chunks.
- Pour in the tequila, triple sec, and lime juice. Add the simple syrup starting with 2 tablespoons. Blend on high for 30–45 seconds until the mixture is completely smooth and slushy with no visible ice chunks or strawberry pieces.
- Taste and adjust. This is the most important step. Dip a spoon in — if it’s too tart, add another tablespoon of simple syrup. If it’s too thick, splash in a little more lime juice or a tablespoon of water. Blend again briefly.
- Pour into rimmed glasses and serve immediately. The texture is best right out of the blender — thick, frosty, and pourable. Garnish with a fresh strawberry or lime wheel.
Fixing a Watery or Icy Margarita
- Too watery: the ice melted during blending. Use larger ice cubes, frozen strawberries, or strawberries pre-frozen for an hour. A less powerful blender can also heat the mixture, so blend in shorter bursts rather than one long run.
- Too thick to pour: add a little more lime juice or a tablespoon of water and blend briefly.
- Too tart: add another tablespoon of simple syrup or agave. Ripeness of the berries changes how much you need.
- Chill the tequila. Room-temperature liquor melts the ice faster. Fifteen minutes in the freezer before blending helps keep the texture frosty.
- Use fresh lime juice. It tastes noticeably brighter and more balanced than bottled.
Swaps and Substitutions
- Frozen strawberries instead of fresh: a good shortcut out of season. They act as both fruit and ice, so use less ice and expect a thicker drink.
- No triple sec: Grand Marnier or Cointreau both work. Or skip the orange liqueur and add an extra tablespoon of simple syrup and a small squeeze of orange juice; expect a slightly less complex drink.
- Without alcohol: leave out the tequila and triple sec and add a little extra ice and a splash of orange juice. You get a thick strawberry slushie that works for kids or anyone skipping alcohol.
Making a Party Batch
A standard blender is easily overloaded when you double the recipe, so blend in rounds. Tripling the recipe in two batches and combining them in a pitcher serves a crowd; keep the pitcher in the freezer between refills to maintain the slushy consistency. To prep ahead, blend the full batch, pour it into a freezer-safe container and freeze for up to 2 hours. Pull it out about 10 minutes before serving and stir or re-blend briefly. It will not be quite as smooth as fresh.
What to Serve With Strawberry Margaritas
The drink goes well with taco night; the sheet pan tacos are an easy match. For other summer drinks, try the watermelon margarita for a different fruit version, or the strawberry basil lemonade for a non-alcoholic option.
