Cantaritos

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Cantaritos are a popular Mexican cocktail recipe made with tequila, citrus fruits, salt, and bubbly grapefruit soda. Each one is sweet, tangy, and incredibly refreshing!

📖 About

Closely related to a paloma, a cantarito is a type of tequila-based cocktail from Mexico. Traditionally, cantaritos are served in clay jugs called jarritos de barro, which means “little jugs.”

These drinks are popular all over the country, and there are even restaurants that specialize in them. Every great cantarito is served with the juice of multiple different citrus fruits:

• Grapefruit
• Orange
• Lime
• Lemon (sometimes)

The combination of citrus, a pinch of salt, a generous pour of tequila blanco, and fizzy grapefruit soda makes for a drink you’re guaranteed to love!

Note: If you google jarritos, you will find the popular Mexican soda brand. Their logo is a drawing of 3 jarritos sitting together.

History

Cantaritos are known to have originated in the state of Jalisco, which is no surprise as this is the birthplace of tequila.

In fact, Tequila is actually a little town located just North West of Guadalajara. It was here that the first large-scale tequila distillery was built (all the way back in the 1600s!).

If you’re ever in the area, make sure you check out Cantaritos el Güero! They are a roadside bar that specializes in this delicious drink.

If you’re able to get through the “extragrande” cantarito cup (more like bucket), a massive kudos to you!

🏺 More on cantarito cups

Cantarito cups (jarritos de barro) come in many different sizes and add a unique drinking experience. Plus, they keep your drink extra cold and refreshing.

Since jarritos are made of clay, it’s best to cure them before making a cantarito recipe. This helps to clean the insides and prevent the cups from sweating. Follow these quick steps:

1. Rinse. Before you use the cups, rinse them with water.
2. Submerge. Place the cups in a large pot or basin of cool water, making sure they’re fully covered.
3. Soak. Keep the cups in the water for about 15 minutes or so.
4. Rinse. When you’re finished, rinse your cups once more with water.
5. Repeat. The next time you make cantaritos, start at step 1.

Buying tip: If you live in Mexico, most places that sell ceramics or pottery will have these cups. If you’re not in Mexico, you can buy jarritos online. Just check that they’re made with natural clay.

🍲 Ingredients & substitutions

For complete ingredient measurements and instructions, see our recipe card.

• Tequila: We prefer tequila blanco in our cantarito drinks for a milder flavor. Choose any brand you like, or replace tequila with white rum, vodka, or gin.
• Citrus: Add lime, orange, grapefruit, and lemon. We prefer using all four fruits, but use at least orange and lime.
• Grapefruit soda: Most cantarito recipes are served with Squirt soda. If you can’t find it, use Fresca or Jarritos Grapefruit. If you can’t find any grapefruit soda, just use extra grapefruit juice, club soda, and a touch of simple syrup.
• Salt: Salt brings out the other flavors and pairs extremely well with tequila. Don’t skip it unless you’re trying to limit your salt intake.

🔪 Instructions

If you have questions about this cantarito recipe, check out our FAQs or leave a comment.

Step 1: If you’re using jarritos, cure them in a basin of water while you prep the rest of the ingredients. If you don’t have jarritos, fill your glasses with ice cubes and water.

Step 2: Squeeze the orange, lemon, lime, and grapefruit into a cocktail shaker or cup. Mix in the tequila and a pinch of salt.

Step 3: Fill your cup about halfway up with ice and pour the citrus mixture over top. Fill the rest of the cup with grapefruit soda.

Step 4: Serve with a pinch more salt on top and a wedge of lemon, lime, orange, or grapefruit. This cantarito drink is tasty with a lime and salt rim or chamoy rim dip. Happy drinking!

🥗 Serving suggestions

Cantaritos have the perfect mix of tangy, sweet, and salty flavors that go exceptionally well with savory antojitos like:

• Tlacoyos: An ancient snack made of blue corn masa topped with cactus salad.
• Huaraches: Oval-shaped corn and bean bases topped with chorizo, pickled onions, and vegan queso.
• Panuchos: Yucatecan specialty of freshly made corn tortillas stuffed with refried black beans.
• Picaditas: Tender corn cakes topped with green or red salsa, fresh onion, and crumbled queso.

🌡️ Storage

Cantaritos are the hit of every party or gathering! Here are a few suggestions on preparation and storage times:

• Prep ahead: If you’re making a big batch, press all the citrus fruits beforehand and keep them in your fridge. When you’re ready to serve, you’ll just have to add the ice, salt, tequila, and soda.
• Freeze: Try freezing the remaining liquid in ice cube trays and use them to chill your next batch of cantaritos.

♻️ Variations

• Change the soda: If you don’t have grapefruit soda, you can try using other flavors like orange, blood orange, lime, or pomegranate.
• Make it virgin: If alcohol isn’t for you, just leave out the tequila for an equally delicious and refreshing virgin cocktail.
• Reduced sugar: To lower the sugar content, use a stevia-sweetened grapefruit Zevia instead.
• Choose your rim: There are a few optional rim styles to choose from — lime and salt, chamoy and Tajin, or chamoy rim paste. We can’t decide which one is our favorite, but try them all and let us know yours!
• Mezcal: Instead of tequila, try mezcal for a smoky cantarito recipe.

💬 FAQ

🍴 Similar recipes

If you enjoyed this cantarito recipe, you might want to take a look at these other refreshing drinks:

• Mangonada: Frozen mango slushie drizzled with chamoy and served with a tamarind straw.
• Agua de piña: Sweet pineapple-infused drink perfect for summer barbecues.
• Agua de sandia: Refreshing and delicious way to enjoy watermelon.
• Agua de tamarindo: Tart, sweet, and unique agua fresca made from tamarind pods.
• Chelada: Beer cocktail made with ice-cold cervezas, salt, and lime juice.
• Grapefruit mezcalini: A smoky mezcal-based cocktail infused with citrus and basil.