Looking For the Perfect Jalapeño Marg? Try This Low-Sugar Recipe That's Only 200 Calories

Every once in a while I enjoy what my 95-year-old grandma calls a “fun drink.” And since I’ve been staying home a lot more lately, I’ve gotten pretty skilled at perfecting my favorite cocktail recipes. I love a good spicy jalapeño margarita when I’m out, but I don’t love all the sugar and simple syrup it tends to get made with. Even store-bought mixers aren’t ideal; this jalapeño margarita mixer from Powell and Mahoney has 20 grams of sugar and 90 calories per serving, and that’s before you add the tequila. As someone with PCOS, I need to be careful about my sugar intake since people with PCOS are more prone to insulin resistance.

So, armed with a sugar-free simple syrup made from monk fruit that I got off the free table at work months ago, I decided to hit my bar cart and start experimenting. Swoon Zero Sugar Simple Syrup has been the perfect replacement to sweeten my beverages without a weird artificial sweetener aftertaste. It works as a 1:1 replacement for any recipe calling for simple syrup, so I was excited to use it to make my jalapeño marg.

The key to this drink is jalapeño-infused tequila. You can always infuse your own tequila with the real peppers and make it as spicy as you want depending on how many seeds you leave in, but I prefer to keep it simple and use Tanteo Jalapeño Tequila. I have been a fan of Tanteo since I first discovered the brand in 2014, and always keep my bar cart stocked with its jalapeño-infused tequila. (Full disclosure: the brand sent me bottles of its habanero and chipotle tequilas to try out, but I ordered this bottle of jalapeño tequila myself via Drizly).

And while a good tequila is important for any marg, I would argue a quality triple sec is just as key. I splurge on Cointreau L’unique and always keep my bar cart stocked with it for margaritas and other cocktail recipes. It adds just the right amount of sweetness, and half an ounce yields 47 calories and 3.5 grams of sugar. The additional half an ounce of Swoon simple syrup balances out the tartness from the lime juice, and using Swoon saves 30 calories and nearly 8 grams of sugar compared to regular simple syrup. So bring happy hour home and mix up a low-sugar jalapeño marg that’s the perfect combo of spicy and sweet!

Low-Sugar Jalapeño Margarita Nutrition Facts

Calories: 200
Fat: 0 grams
Carbohydrates: 8 grams
Sugar: 6 grams
Protein: 0 grams

Notes

What you need:

Ice
Cocktail shaker (or mason jar with lid)
Jigger
Citrus press
Rocks glass

Ingredients

2 ounce jalapeño-infused tequila (I used Tanteo)
1/2 ounce triple sec (I used Cointreau L’unique)
1/2 ounce sugar-free simple syrup (I used Swoon)
1 ounce fresh lime juice (about the juice of one whole lime)

Directions

Fill a cocktail shaker with about 3/4 of a cup of ice.
Pour in jalapeño-infused tequila, triple sec, and sugar-free simple syrup.
Using a citrus press, squeeze the juice of two halves of a lime into the cocktail shaker.
Shake well, then pour margarita and ice into a cocktail glass (I prefer a rocks glass).

Optional:

Rub rim of glass with lime wedge, then salt the rim.
Replace Tanteo’s Jalapeño Tequila with its Chipotle or Habanero tequilas for another spicy variation.