Tuesday, March 3, 2009

Habanero Infused Tequila

Infused tequila is wonderful. Prickly pear, strawberries, or aromatics such as lemongrass all make for great alcohol. This recipe infuses chile peppers into the tequila for three days, yielding a spicy alcohol with the unmistakable citrus note of habaneros.

Habanero Infused Tequila
Habanero Infused Tequila

This recipe calls for seeding the habanero chile peppers. Even if you are a heat fan—and I am!—do not skip this step. The capsaicinoids will steep into the tequila far faster than any flavor, quickly overpowering the infusion. If you want a stronger result, add another seeded pepper.

Habanero chile peppers
Habanero chile peppers

Makes 750ml.

Ingredients:

3 habanero chile peppers
one 750 milliliter bottle tequila blanco , such as Partida Blanco or Patrón Silver

Slice off the tops of the habaneros. Cut the peppers in half height-wise. Remove all of the seeds, but keep the fibrous ribbing.

We will perform the infusion in the tequila's own bottle. If needed, pour out enough of the tequila to make room for the chile peppers. Add the 6 habanero halves. Seal the bottle. Store in a cool, dark place for 3 days.

At the end of the third day, strain the tequila through double layers of cheese cloth into a second container. Clean and dry the tequila bottle. Return the infused tequila to the original bottle. Will keep in a cool, dark place indefinitely.

18 comments—please comment:

  1. Last night, I had a "grapefruit picante margarita" that was amazing. The recipe calls for habañero infused tequila so I'm happy to find this recipe so I can start making the drink at home.

    How spicy does this recipe turn out? I'm looking for more of an earthy flavor with a little bit of heat. Also, have you tried this with a reposado?

    Thanks for sharing!
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  2. Hi, eyelasssh.

    This recipe yields a bit more than "a little bit of heat" but it is not overly spicy. You might try only 1 or 2 peppers, and cut out all of the ribbing and fiber on the inside, along with every last seed.

    I've made infused tequila with a couple peppers now (I have a recipe for dried thai bird's eye peppers I will put up soon), but nothing beats habaneros -- their citrusy flavor is great in tequila.

    As for reposado, I haven't infused peppers into anything but blanco. I don't think using reposado would be bad, but the purity and lack of wood/caramel notes in a nonaged tequila is probably a better fit. If you do try it, let me know!

    Good luck and enjoy. -- Robert
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  3. Thanks Robert. I'm impatient and have a bottle of reposado on hand so I'm going to go for it. I'll keep you posted.

    Looking forward to reading about the dried thai bird's eye peppers recipe.
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  4. Don't de-seed the habaneros. Just slice them lengthwise and put 'em in the bottle. 4 or 5 do well, and you might want to wear surgical gloves while washing, handling and slicing them. And I leave the peppers in the bottle- no straining.

    I've been doing this for 10 years with outstanding results. I've always used Herradura, but any decent tequila will do. Cheap tequila is probably as good, because the heat dominates the flavor (by far.) Maybe the next batch will be Cuervo.

    I let the bottle sit quietly in the refrigerator for at least a month or two, sometimes 6, before tasting. The result is pure liquid pepper spray. Taste a few (4-5 drops) for a real tequila heat-kick. Put about 8-10 drops into a 1-oz. shot of tequila for a real different taste treat. Good in a margarita, too. Cold, icy, with the contradictory heat flash. Use 1/4 of a shot in a 16-oz margarita.

    This recipe goes for heat, plain and simple. To make it less hot, cut the infusion with another bottle of unaltered tequila. It goes a LONG way and is great in hot sauces, on grilled chicken, in margaritas (as I said) or straight.

    Caution: Be careful - do not drink too much at once. 1/3 of a shot will set your stomach up-side-down for a good 2 minutes, and your mouth and throat will rage for at least that long. If you can get past that, you'll be treated to a strange, almost mystical, 15 minute high. I theorize it's the body's endorphin release because of the pain receptor slam you get by downing a partial shot. Capsaicin hits pain receptors, that's what produces the "hot" taste/reaction. I think the body sees this big hit on pain receptors and dumps endorphins immediately. The 15 minute "afterglow" is unlike anything I have ever experienced.

    I still have samples at are 10 years old from my first experiment, and it is as hot today was it was at 6 months. It's great at parties (don't leave it out, be safe and control access to avoid somebody doing tooo much at once. Just give your test subjects a 4-5 drop "dose" in a shot glass.) It's best to toss it fast right over the tongue. And, it never goes bad.
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  5. Bill, thank you for your recipe.

    I'm aiming for something more drinkable, balanced, and refined--but I like your approach. Alcoholic pepper spray. Good work.
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  6. We have been doing that with rum. One large whole habenero and a quart of rum. The flavor is great but I may try seeding the next one. it is extremely hot and I looking for the same flavor with less heat.
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  7. I did this last night with a 750ml bottle of 1800 Reposado.

    I added three Habanero peppers from Whole Foods, halved and seeded. I love spicy foods.

    After about 22 hours, my curiosity got the best of me. I flipped the bottle over once (to make sure it was somewhat blended) then righted it, uncorked the bottle and submerged a finger in the booze. I then tasted it.

    It burns! I can't fathom leaving them in for 3 days. It's delicious, but I fear my (less) heat-loving girlfriend may not be able to handle it. I decided anything more than 24 hours with 3 hot habaneros would be way too much for any normal person.

    I filtered the spirits into a pitcher, pulled the peppers out of the bottle and poured it back in. This is really as hot as a drink needs to be. Just a tiny sip is accompanied by a burning tongue and a noticeable endorphin rush. (I enjoy really, really hot sauce.)

    The citrusey aroma sits right on the top, nearly (but not quite) masking the flavor of the tequila. The initial flavor is one of "brightness", like somehow the tequila flavor was made sharper. Then, over the course of the next 15 seconds, your tongue comes alight. Aspirate the tiniest bit (it's easy to accidentally take it down the wrong tube, especially if you're trying to really savor the flavor) and you're in for a world of pain.

    As much as I like this (and I better like it, because I've got a solid fifth of this stuff on the shelf) I'd definitely try using two peppers next time. If it didn't offer quite enough heat, they could always sit in there for another 12-24 hours, as I tasted periodically.

    One more note: WEAR GLOVES. Wear rubber gloves, wear latex gloves, wear some sort of impermeable synthetic gloves while you slice and seed the habaneros. I did not, and wound up having to wash my hands five times (twice with abrasive pumice soap) to reach a point where I could touch my own face without leaving a violent burning sensation. I was afraid to pee at all during this time, for fear of experiencing the same sensation on my penis. I couldn't touch my eyes. One of the cats licked my thumb and jumped down from the sofa, wide-eyed in shock, frantically rubbing at his nose and swiveling his head around in distress.

    I guess what I'm trying to say is this: This is not a drink for cats.
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  8. haha THAT was a funny story
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  9. LOL. Design Stupendous what a funny story. Made even funnier b/c I just did this today with vodka and by the time I walked away from cutting the habaneros over the sink I was sweating, crying and drool was coming from my nose and mouth. I was sneezing and coughing at the same time and the worst part was I was very hesitatant (scared) to use paper towels or anything to wipe my face for fear of getting the stinging juices on my hand on my face. I'm now convinced habanero is the main ingredient in pepper spray. WOW!!
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  10. I forgot to add... though it stung so bad.. it is oh so good. I'm going to use the pepper infused vodka for blood maries primarily.
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  11. To Bill Underwood above,

    Since you like it hot, here is my recipe for Mini-Gitmo-jito (Git Mo' Heat-O)
    You need a turkey injector to make it easy, and an egg carton. Enough fresh Habanero peppers to make one for each guest that would want one. Mango juice, fresh mint leaves and lemon juice.

    24 hours before party time wash peppers and cut small hole in tip of each (can use a lobe tip if pepper is not pointed).
    Put in egg carton with hole up.
    Use turkey baster to fill with tequila or rum.
    Refrigerate 24 hours till party.
    In a Double shot glass you will add one mint leaf muddled with 2 or 3 drops of lemon juice, add Mango juice to fill to one ounce.
    Empty one Habanero into the glass and top off if needed.
    Gently stir, and bottoms up!


    I do not recommend sipping this drink as it will tingle the lips...for quite a while. Yes, you will get an endorphin rush out of this drink.
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  12. Robert,
    I spaced out when I went to the store and bought hot red chili peppers instead of habaneros. Would what I bought work?
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  13. Red Hot Chili Peppers as in Anthony Kiedis?

    They might give you a burning sensation, but I wouldn't infuse a tequila with them.
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  14. I'm with you Bill. I've been doing this for a couple of years now. I like to use cheap montezuma tequila. I put in about 4 habaneros and let it sit until the peppers are bleached. I might try the 3 day approach with a finer tequila.
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  15. I tried habanero infused tequila at a bar, and decided that I had to try and make it. I sliced up six hapanero peppers into slivers, and left most of the seeds in. I also chopped up a whole head of cilantro and threw it in the bottle. After about five hours of soaking, I strained the produce out and poured the tequila back into the bottle. One shot lasts for a whole meal, and really compliments mexican food. :-)
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  16. I absolutely got hooked on infusion 263 red hot chili pepper tequila---it is no longer available and i have been dying for spicy hot tequila for sooooo long! Thanks for all the great ideas and recipes---can't wait to try it!
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  17. 1 l of Tequilla + 2 naga jolokia peppers + 2 limes = Roller-coaster ride through hell!! :D
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  18. I found this page via a Google search after having a "firefly" at a restaurant that serves Brazilian food. It was Habenero-infused tequila, and I know not what else. I would think lime juice, at least. She shook the mixture with shaved ice and strained it into a glass, and floated some chopped cilantro on it. It was good.
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