Margaritas, a beloved and refreshing mixed drink, can be easily adapted to fit a ketogenic lifestyle. A skinny margarita distinguishes itself by containing fewer carbohydrates, calories, and sugars than its traditional counterpart. This article explores how to make a margarita that is not only "skinny" but also keto-friendly and low-carb.
Understanding the Keto Diet and Sugar
The keto diet emphasizes avoiding sugar and refined carbohydrates to maintain a state of ketosis. Traditional margaritas often contain a significant amount of sugar, typically ranging from 16 to 24 grams per serving. This high sugar content makes them unsuitable for a keto diet.
Key Ingredients for a Keto-Friendly Margarita
To create a keto margarita, it's essential to replace high-sugar ingredients with low-carb alternatives. Here's a breakdown of the key components:
Tequila
When it comes to alcoholic drinks it’s pretty straightforward. Spirits like tequila, vodka, gin, whiskey, brandy, and cognac have ZERO CARBS, which means on Keto they are totally acceptable. Your problem is going to be what you add to any of these spirits. Pick a high-quality tequila to ensure it has that lovely semi -sweet taste that comes from the agave plant. This will also help to round out the flavor profiles of our drink without any added sugar or simple syrup.
Sweetener
Unlike a regular margarita which has 16-24 grams of sugar per serving, erythritol is completely sugar free. Instead of using traditional sugar, a low-carb keto sweetener like erythritol is used. Powdered erythritol, also known as confectioners erythritol, works best as it dissolves easily. If only granular erythritol is available, it can be pulsed in a coffee grinder to achieve a powdered consistency. Another option is to use a liquid sweetener such as Lakanto Liquid Monkfruit extract.
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Orange Flavor
Triple sec, a high-sugar alcohol that adds an orange flavor to margaritas, needs to be replaced. Instead of using triple sec we opted for a sparkling orange seltzer water. If you don’t want or can’t find orange seltzer water, you can get away with sparkling water and a few drops of orange extract or orange zest. Make sure that the orange extract you buy is pure alcohol and orange oil rather than anything else. Companies will sometimes try to mix it with sugar or corn syrup as a cheaper option. Orange extract can also be used in future drinks and treats so it’s always a good investment to have on hand.
Lime Juice
Even though it is super easy to buy bottled lime juice, freshly squeezed lime juice is always the way to go. It’s low carb, low sugar, and superior in flavor and quality when compared to bottled juices. Fresh lime juice is made by simply squeezing a few limes over a strainer, or making fresh squeezed juice in a juicer. The nutrition information for 1 oz of lime juice is just 1/2 a gram of sugar. That means per serving it is only 0.25 grams of sugar.
Making a Keto Margarita: Step-by-Step
Making a margarita keto is quick and easy with a total time of just 10 minutes. There’s really only one thing you need to make a good margarita and that’s a cocktail shaker.
Prepare the Glass: Cut a wedge of lime and run it around the rim of a margarita glass. Pour coarse salt onto a plate and dip the rim of the glass in the salt. This adds to the traditional margarita experience without adding carbs.
Combine Ingredients: Fill a cocktail shaker half-full with ice. Add tequila, lime juice, and Swerve(sweetener) to the shaker. For extra orange flavor, add a 1/2 teaspoon of orange extract.
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Shake Well: Seal the cocktail shaker and shake well until the outside is frosted, about 10 to 15 seconds. Shaking chills the mixture and blends the ingredients thoroughly.
Serve: Fill your prepared glasses with ice and strain your margarita into it Top with sparkling water and stir.
Variations and Flavor Enhancements
This simple syrup free keto margarita is a great base for all your favorite refreshing flavors. Get creative with this recipe and add more than just a simple lime wedge and tequila.
Spicy Margarita: Muddle a few jalapeños and then shake them in with the drink. Use pink salt on the rim instead of sea salt and you’ve got a whole new spicy tequila kick!
Fresh Herbs: Play around with some herbs in this margarita recipe. It is a Mexican drink so you can try fresh herbs like mint or rosemary to pair with the lime.
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Cucumber Margarita: Adding cucumber is another way to make a fresh tasting margarita keto. It adds a light and delicate flavor when muddled into the recipe, but no extra carbs.
Strawberry Margarita: A strawberry lime margarita is the perfect sweet drink recipe to try.
Other Keto-Friendly Drink Options
While margaritas are amazing, there are plenty of other keto drink recipes on our site to mix up and try. Get creative with the recipes and step out of your comfort zone. Try adding something extra to the mix next time, because adventure always tastes better with a little tequila ?
Keto Cocktails: Calling all cocktail lovers! Here we have two different keto recipes, a Bloody Mary (add the loaded meat and cheese topper!) and a Strawberry Vodka Cocktail. Both pack stunning flavors that you can add to and build on in order to make your favorite cocktail.
Low Carb Mojito: Fresh mint is such a fun flavor, and this mojito takes just 10 minutes total time to make. It’s refreshing and light without being too sweet. If you like mint you’re sure to love this keto mojito.
Apple Cider Moscow Mule: Another 10 minute total time recipe made with diet ginger beer to preserve that iconic mule flavor.
Keto Old Fashioned: If you’re a whiskey bourbon lover, you’ll go nuts for this low carb simple alcoholic drink recipe.
Keto Martini: Sit back and enjoy this delicious, keto friendly classic cocktail.
Keto Pina Colada: Pretend you’re at the beach with this tropical cocktail.
All these drinks take just 1o minutes total time, making them a great drink to elevate even the most basic meals. Make a few for your next keto dinner party and let us know your favorite!
Pairing Your Keto Margarita with Food
Ok, well it is pretty true that you can pair a margarita with so many things, that it’s hard for me to tell you everything. When my husband is making margaritas at night, it’s usually just because we both are like “hey let’s have a marg tonight with dinner.” He and I will drink a margarita, with basically any type of dish I make.
Keto Nachos: These tasty nachos can be made two different ways, but both are delicious! The pork rind nachos recipe is keto, gluten free, and perfect with a margarita.
Keto Fajitas: This is the best alternative to taco night. Make these flavorful fajitas with either chicken or steak to pair with your margarita.
Keto Stuffed Peppers: This recipe is for all those guys and gals who like a little heat in their food.
Keto Tacos with Cheese Taco Shells: Ok so this one is easy. Tacos and margaritas pretty much always go hand in hand with each other.
All these recipes are simple and easy to make with a short total time so you can get back to the party. So go ahead and try some of these delicious Mexican recipes and make a keto margarita to go with it.
The Nutritional Benefits
This keto friendly recipe is sure to knock your socks off. It has simple ingredients, it’s refreshing, and it’s super easy to make. Plus this skinny margarita is sugar free, but tastes like the original. Our low carb keto margarita recipe only has 1 gram of net carbs. The carbs come from lime juice and erythritol, however erythritol is always subtracted from the total carbs to give you net carbs.