Micheladas seem ubiquitous this summer. They showed up in the New York Times magazine last week and quickly appeared on the Huffington Post’s food blog soon after. They were on the menu at my graduation dinner at Rosa Mexicano and have been a part of the brunch deal at Roots & Vines, the coffee shop around the corner from Keith’s apartment, for as long as I’ve gotten my iced coffees there.
The michelada’s omnipresence makes sense: a spicy beer cocktail is a great way to cool off when it’s hot. Traditionally, micheladas consist of some form of beer (to keep it traditional, the Mexican Tecate), tomato juice, a few drops of Worcestershire or Tabasco, lime juice and some mix of cayenne or jalapeño powder, with a seasoned-salt rim. There’s a million ways to make it, which makes it all the more perfect for a sweltering summer day.
Roots & Vines offered free micheladas with brunch this weekend, and they were much appreciated on this blazing hot weekend. Thankfully, their micheladas come without tomato juice (which apparently makes them just cheladas, according to the Times mag). Gourmet has a good chelada recipe, though really, just pouring the ingredients into a glass and tasting along the way seems like the best way to make this drink.
The lime and hot sauce combine to form quite a kick, so it’s no wonder that Mexicans consider the michelada a good hangover remedy. Bottoms up!
Note (from 10/14): We used this recipe when making Micheladas for Madame in Paris.
Micheladas
– 1 12-ounce bottle of Corona, or other light beer
– 1-1/2 teaspoon of cayenne or spicy paprika
– 1 lime quarter
– 1 teaspoon hot sauce
– 1 teaspoon kosher salt
– large, chilled beer glass
1) Mix together the kosher salt and 1/2 of a teaspoon of the cayenne or paprika on a large flat surface. Slide the quarter of lime around the rim of the beer glass, making sure to coat the entire top of the rim. Place the top of the glass in the salt mix to coat it with the salt.
2) Pour the beer in the glass and add the remaining lime juice, hot sauce and spices. Drop the squeezed lime in and enjoy!
Tecate is super popular on this side of the country- the preferred inexpensive beer. I might need to try the jazzed-up version!