Happiness is Happy Hour: 50 Margarita Pitcher Recipes (2024)

There’s nothing more refreshing than a delicious margarita during happy hour. The perfect blend of sweet, bitter, sour and salty, a well-made margarita is a go-to for a reason. Made with fresh, simple ingredients, once you perfect the margarita, it’s sure to be a favourite among your friends. Along with being a delicious drink on its own, it also pairs swimmingly with food, especially of the Tex-Mex variety. The acidity compliments fattier foods like meats and cheeses, while the salty rim adds more depth to the salt in your food. Ideally paired with apps like nachos and shrimp ceviche, it’s the perfect co*cktail to sip while you snack away. If you love hosting happy hour at your house, check out 50 margarita pitcher recipes everyone will love!

How to Make the Perfect Margarita

1. Perfect Proportions
The components of a classic margarita are tequila, triple sec and lime juice. Seems easy enough, but if you’ve ever made a margarita before, you know they don’t always turn out so tasty. Mastering the margarita takes practice and the secret to the perfect margarita is in the proportions. 1 ½ oz. tequila, 1 ½ oz triple sec or cointreau and 1 to 1 ¼ oz lime juice tends to create the perfect drink. You can also add up to 2 teaspoons of agave syrup if you like your margaritas on the sweeter side. Rim your glass with salt and you’re in for a delectable boozy treat.

2. Shake It Up
Once you’ve got the proportions measured out, shake all the ingredients with cracked ice in a co*cktail shaker until the exterior frosts. Strain the concoction into a glass over ice or “up” into a co*cktail glass.

3. 100% De Agave Tequila
Making your margarita with the very best tequila will ensure your margaritas taste incredible. 100% de agave tequila or 100% puro de agave tequila means the tequila is distilled completely from fermented, distilled blue agave. These tequilas are more expensive, but you get a superior quality and flavour, and since the main flavour of the margarita is tequila, it’s definitely worth it.

4. Triple Sec vs. Cointreau
Triple sec and cointreau can both be used in margaritas. They provide relatively the same flavour, however the main difference between them is their alcohol content. Triple sec is orange flavoured liqueur made from dried peels of oranges and ranges in alcohol content from 15% to 30%. Cointreau, made from the skins of sweet and bitter oranges is a stronger alternative at 40%. It really depends how strong you want your margarita to be.

5. Taste the Lime
Limes can vary in flavour depending on the time of year and the batch. You want your lime to add a refreshing touch, not to turn your margarita into a super sour drink. Try to taste your lime before you mix it into your drink. If you have a sour, bitter lime, add the lesser amount in the recipe above, however, if the lime is nice and refreshing, you can add the higher quantity.

6. Think Twice About Frozen Margaritas
While a frozen margarita (margarita that’s blended with ice until slushy) is great in theory, it ends up dulling the tongue with cold, making it hard to taste the flavours of the margarita. Pouring your margarita over ice or drinking it “up” will ensure you taste all the delicious flavours, which is especially important if you splurged on more expensive ingredients.

50 Margarita Pitcher Recipes

1. Margaritas by the Pitcher | Liquor
2. Watermelon Pitcher Margaritas | Simply Recipes
3. Pitch Perfect Margaritas | All Recipes
4. Pitcher Style Margaritas for a Crowd | Pinch of Yum
5. Party Pitcher Pineapple Margaritas | Best Recipe Box
6. Jalapeño Margaritas | Love and Lemons
7. Blue Margaritas | Leite’s Culinaria
8. Skinny Margarita Pitcher | Fit Foodie Finds
9. Pomegranate Margaritas | Fork in the Road
10. Blood Orange Margaritas | Garnish with Lemon
11. Blackberry Margaritas | My Recipes
12. Fresh Mango Margaritas (No Sugar Added) | Downshiftology
13. Spicy Citrus Margaritas (Orange, Grapefruit and Lime) | Easy Cooking with Lime
14. Grapefruit Margaritas | Living Well Kitchen
15. Smoky Orange Margaritas | Food Network
16. Cucumber Margaritas | Isabel Eats
17. Chilli Lime Mango Margaritas | Minimalist Baker
18. Tangy Blood Orange Margarita | Superman Cooks
19. Strawberry Basil Margaritas | The Kitchn
20. Pomegranate Margaritas | Lemon Blossoms
21. Rhubarb Margaritas | Zestful Kitchen
22. Spicy Mango Jalapeno Margarita | Freutcake
23. Cucumber Jalapeño Margaritas | Cooking Channel
24. Fresh Strawberry Margaritas | Gimme Some Oven
25. Pineapple Mango Margaritas | The Kitchen Magpie
26. Blueberry Pitcher Margaritas | Simply Recipes
27. Watermelon Jalapeño Margaritas | My Recipes
28. Fizzy Grapefruit Margaritas | Well Plated
29. Skinny Blackberry Margaritas | Well Plated
30. Spicy Strawberry Lime Margaritas | Patron Tequila
31. Sparking Pomegranate Margaritas | Minimalist Baker
32. Strawberry Rhubarb Margaritas | Savoring the Good
33. Fresh Watermelon Margaritas | Eat Yourself Skinny
34. Pineapple Jalapeño Pitcher Margaritas | Simply Recipes
35. Raspberry Lemonade Margaritas | Crazy for Crust
36. Extra Skinny Margaritas by the Pitcher | Artzy Foodie
37. Sparkling Rhubarb Margarita Pitcher | My Kitchen Love
38. Elderflower Margaritas | Spices in My DNA
39. Peach Margaritas | The Anthony Kitchen
40. Green Margaritas | Gimme Some Oven
41. Celery Root Margaritas | Apologue
42. Cranberry Pitcher Margaritas | The Kitchn
43. Hawaiian Margaritas | Crazy for Crust
44. Passionfruit Mango Mint Margaritas | Beyond Sweet and Savory
45. Creamy Coconut Margaritas | All Recipes
46. Tropical Margaritas (Pineapple, Passionfruit and Mango) | Laylita’s Recipes
47. Fresh Mint Margaritas | Gimme Some Oven
48. Tequila Sunrise Margaritas | Homemade Food Junkie
49. Sparkling Cranberry Orange Margaritas | Vegetarian Ventures
50. Clementine Margaritas | 40 Aprons

Everyone loves a good margarita! Try out these recipes and become the master margarita maker of all your friends!

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