Margarita Mocktail Recipe on the Rocks
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A mocktail margarita is a delicious alcohol-free option for a hot day or any Taco Tuesday. We’re skipping the non-alcoholic margarita mix from the grocery store in favor of fresh fruit in this delicious virgin margarita recipe.
Alcoholic drinks are not always the best idea on hot summer days where it’s easy to sip too many of them while out in the sunshine. But I still want to sip a fun drink while poolside or sitting by the lake!
This margarita recipe is the idea non-alcoholic substitute for the classic drink, using fresh ingredients found at your local grocery store.
The secret ingredient in this margarita mocktail recipe is orange blossom water which, when added with the fresh orange juice, does a great job of creating the orange liqueur or triple sec flavor found in traditional margaritas.
When testing this recipe, a few ingredients found in a lot of mocktails were immediately scrapped – like club soda, tonic water, and lemon juice.
Margaritas are never fizzy, so the club soda and tonic water didn’t make sense in the drink. And the lemon juice overpowered the fresh lime juice, giving the mocktail more of a lemonade taste than margarita.
I’m also skipping zero proof liquor in the recipe because they tend to be very expensive and most people don’t have them on hand. If you do happen to have a zero proof tequila in your home bar, add 1.5 oz to this margarita recipe.
Ingredients
- Fresh limes – Fresh only for this recipe! With only 4 ingredients, fresh citrus is important for the best flavor in your virgin margarita. You’ll need 1-2 limes per margarita for this recipe, depending on their size.
- Fresh orange – See above note about limes. Squeeze a fresh orange. You’ll need half an orange for this recipe.
- Simple syrup – This is the only sugar going into your drink. Make this easy 2 ingredient syrup a head of time so it has time to chill. Get the recipe and tips over on my simple syrup recipe page.
- Orange flower water – The secret ingredient! Orange flower water makes a HUGE difference for this cocktail. Find it near the bitters in your local liquor store.
- Coarse salt (garnish) – The best margaritas come with salt on the rim! This non-alcoholic margarita is no exception.
How to Make a Margarita Mocktail (Step by Step)
Place salt in a shallow dish. Run a piece of lime around the rim of a rocks glass.
Dip the rim of your glass into the salt. Fill the glass with ice. Set aside.
Add lime juice, orange juice, simple syrup, and orange flower water to a cocktail shaker that’s half filled with ice cubes.
Shake well. Strain into your prepared rocks glass. Garnish with a lime wheel or lime wedge. Enjoy!
Margarita Mocktail Recipe (Virgin Margarita)
Ingredients
- 2 oz lime juice
- 1 oz orange juice
- 2.5 oz simple syrup
- 5 dashes orange flower water
- Coarse salt, for garnish
- Lime slices, for garnish
Instructions
- Run a piece of lime around the rim of a rocks glass.
- Place salt in a shallow dish. Dip the rim of the glass into the salt.Coarse salt
- Fill the glass with ice and set aside.
- Add lime juice, orange juice, simple syrup, and orange flower water to a cocktail shaker that’s half filled with ice.2 oz lime juice, 1 oz orange juice, 2.5 oz simple syrup, 5 dashes orange flower water
- Shake well for 10-15 seconds.
- Strain into your prepared rocks glass. Garnish with a lime slice. Enjoy!Lime slices
Notes
Video
Recipe Tips
- Make your simple syrup at least a few hours before you want to make your drink. Simple syrups last for at least a couple of weeks, so make some when you have a few minutes to spare and put it in the refrigerator to be ready whenever you want to mix up a drink.
- While I HIGHLY recommend using only fresh citrus fruit for this recipe, if you really don’t want to squeeze fresh juice, be sure to buy quality bottled juice. The juices available in the refrigerated section of your store are more fresh tasting than those on the shelves. Look for phrases on the label like “100% juice” and “not from concentrate.”
Looking for more Non-Alcoholic Drink Recipes?
Want more tasty and delicious mocktail recipes? This grapefruit Paloma mocktail is a non-alcoholic take on the classic tequila Paloma. For something more fruit, try this citrus pomegranate mocktail made with pomegranate juice. Or make a batch of my Sparkling Citrus Punch mocktails.
FAQs and Substitutions
You can buy a bottle or orange flower water online or find it in your local liquor store. It’s usually kept by the bitters. (The bottles look the same.) Even though it’s sold with cocktail ingredients, orange flower water is 100% alcohol free.
Agave syrup will work well in this drink if you don’t have simple syrup or aren’t consuming white sugar. Skip the maple syrup and honey – the flavors of those sweeteners will overpower the citrus juice.
I prefer my margaritas in rocks glasses because they’re easier for me to drink out of and I’m much less likely to spill them. If you’re more graceful than me, feel free to use stemmed margarita glass instead of a rocks glass for this mocktail.
What to Serve with Margarita Mocktails
A great margarita deserves a great snack! Try my homemade tortilla chips and 5 minute blender salsa for a delicious and EASY homemade happy hour!
My husband and I made this with Demerara simple syrup (half the amount since it’s twice the sweetness) and five drops of orange blossom water and DAMN. This is phenomenal. Everyone should be making this. I gave some to my toddler as well and he loved it too. Thanks for the brilliant recipe!
This comment made my day! I’m so happy you like it! 🙂