086. Mojito (recipe)
The mojito (Mojito in American usage, Moxito in Spanish) is a traditional Cuban cocktail that became popular in the 1980s and hasn't lost ground since. The word "mojito" comes from "mojo", meaning "a spell, a charm, a magic formula". The combination of sweet, refreshing citrus and mint, added to rum to disguise its strength, made the cocktail one of the most popular summer drinks. In a virgin mojito the white rum is replaced with water and brown cane sugar, but I'll tell (and show) you the recipe for the alcoholic mojito — almost in its classic form.
Cooking time ≈ 3 minutes.
Ingredients:
- 60 ml white rum
- mint
- cane sugar
- lime
- sparkling water
Instead of lime and sparkling water I used lemon tonic (it doesn't affect the taste much). It's also recommended to make mojito in tall glasses, but that isn't essential either.
Put the mint leaves in the bottom of the glass.
Add the cane sugar and squeeze the lime juice onto it (if your sparkling water isn't lemon-flavoured).
Add ice (crushed is best), pour the rum over the top and stir well.
Dilute with sparkling water and stir again.
Bon appétit!
p.S
The classic mojito recipe has many variations: some prefer to make it with apple or orange juice, others add strawberries. Either way, the method doesn't change.