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An El Pepino cocktail in a coupe glass.

El Pepino

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El Pepino is a Tequila based cocktail that will probably remind you of a Margarita except with a few key differences. Like the Margarita, you're combining Tequila with Triple Sec and Lime Juice (albeit in slightly different ratios); these are tried and true flavours that go extremely well with Tequila, but El Pepino adds a little bit more. It adds more with Cucumber, Coriander (or Cilantro if that's what you call it), a bit of sweetness from Simple Syrup, and then some Egg White for look and mouth feel.
So you can see how the base of this cocktail recipe relies a fair bit on the Margarita, but it takes it quite a bit further! This recipe is a relatively modern invention, coming to us out of Las Vegas. While we love a good old fashioned Margarita (and we'd say there's no need to improve it), it's nice to see a twist on a classic that, in a lot of ways, creates a whole new drink that's completely different from the original.
Have fun!
Total Time 5 minutes
Servings 1 cocktail

Ingredients

  • 45 mL Tequila Reposado Feel free to try other Tequila styles as well
  • 20 mL Triple Sec
  • 30 mL Lime Juice
  • 20 mL Simple Syrup
  • 3 slices Cucumber
  • 6 leaves Coriander (some call it Cilantro)
  • Egg White
  • Garnish with an additional slice of Cucumber

Instructions

  • Throw the Cucumber slices (that you aren't using for garnish), Coriander, and Simple Syrup into a cocktail shaker and muddle.
  • Add Tequila, Triple Sec, Lime Juice, and Egg White to the shaker with ice. If you want a frothier cocktail, don't add ice just yet.
  • If you added ice, shake more than you would usually; you really want to get that Egg White frothed up. If you haven't added ice yet, dry shake for a bit then shake again with ice.
  • Strain into a Coupe glass.
  • Garnish and serve. Have fun.

Notes

The name of this cocktail comes from the Spanish word for Cucumber. Translated directly, El Pepino means The Cucumber. And why not, that's what's in there! Although the Coriander also adds plenty of flavour, it's really the Cucumber that's the star of the show here. Some would say that Cucumber doesn't really taste like anything, but it really does! Combined with the bolder flavours of the Tequila and the Lime Juice, the Cucumber cools things off a little bit, which can be quite welcome.
Further on ingredients, if Coriander isn't your thing (some people hate it!), we'd encourage you not to get rid of it all together. The flavour does a lot to balance this cocktail out and give it a truly Mexican feel. Instead, consider dialing back the Coriander a bit to give just a hint.