Virgin Triple Sec
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There are times when I just want a margarita but without the alcohol ...or even the feelings from the alcohol as, let’s face it, seem to intensify as we get older.
Something that would be great for a weeknight, during the day on the weekend in between errands, or just to simply enjoy for the taste because Margaritas are just freaking delicious!
You’ll need the following equipment:
Ingredients:
Mandarin Oranges
Orange Blossom Water
In a not so distant past - a virgin margarita would be a blend of orange juice, lime, agave and water - which we can all agree, tastes nothing like a margarita. So many new spiritless spirits have been popping up on the scene - including tequila alternatives, which amazingly taste just like the real thing... But I haven’t found any non-alcoholic triple sec that tastes like actual triple sec...so I made my own. And it tastes JUST like the real deal and it’s made with all fresh ingredients.
The first and most important decision on my journey to make my own non alcoholic triple sec, was the type of oranges to use.
After some deliberation, I decided to go with mandarins. They have a much stronger and bolder orange flavor than the larger orange varieties.
I also wanted to add a bit of complexity, so I will also be using this dried Curaçao orange peel I got from a brewing supply store.
Curaçao oranges are actually quite bitter and are mostly used to make liqueurs like Blue Curaçao and marmalades. I’m going to use them to make an orange extract.
While I could have cheated and steeped this vodka since I will only be using a small amount- I wanted to make this triple sec 100% alcohol free. To make the extract I will be using a blend of distilled water and glycerin. When using glycerin to make an extract of bitters- you want to be sure to use a food safe glycerin. I found this one at Whole Foods.
To make the bitters, add 3 parts glycerin to 1-part distilled water. In my case, I used 1.5 oz glycerin and .5 oz distilled water- then stir to combine. Then I will add 1 heaping teaspoon of the bitter orange peel, as well as 5 drops of orange blossom water. Now this just needs time to infuse. I let mine sit for 12 days. For a stronger flavor, these can sit for a month or up to a month and a half. Once it has reached its desired orange flavor, simply strain out the solids. Then bottle and label it.
For the mandarins- I am going to be incorporating both the juice and the peels. For this recipe- I use 7 mandarin oranges.
I will be making an oleo saccharum with the mandarin peels first by peeling the mandarins. Be sure to remove the wax coating on the mandarins before peeling them. Just quickly douse them with hot water and give em a scrub with a kitchen towel and then rinse them off. This will ensure that we have no unwanted flavors or impurities in the oleo saccharum.
Once I have removed the peels, I’m going to cut them into smaller pieces and remove all or as much of the bitter white pith as I can with a paring knife.
Place the peels into a zip lock bag and weigh them. Then add the equal amount of sugar by weight. Now I will remove the air from the bag, seal it and give it a quick massage to ensure the orange peels are covered in sugar. The sugar will extract the oil from the mandarin peels to create an amazing mandarin syrup.
I let mine sit overnight, and when I check on it the next day, the oils have dissolved all the sugar and the oleo saccharum is ready to be extracted. Which I do by simply squeezing out of the bag over a mesh strainer.
As for the rest of the mandarins- I’m just going to juice them using my juice press. Without the peels, this got a bit messy, but they yielded a good amount of juice. I even went back and juiced a few handfuls a second or third time, which helped to get a full cup of juice out of them.
I want to extend the longevity of this triple sec, so to give it a longer shelf life- I’m going to clarify the mandarin juice with pectinex. The reason fresh juice turns so fast is because of the floating pulp or fruit solids left in the juice. These are primarily made of pectin. Pectinex is a blend of pectic enzymes specifically formulated to break down pectin if fruit and vegetable juice.
This was my first time using this product- and it’s pretty impressive. I just added 5 drops to the juice and stirred it. I let it sit for 20 minutes and it was nearly clear. It actually works after if you heat it, but I didn’t want to risk the integrity of the juice, so I let it sit covered in the fridge overnight- and wow- it was pretty clear. To remove the pectin solids, I just slowly poured it through a coffee filter. It will continue to get clearer the longer it sits as well.
Once all the ingredients have been macerated, steeped and clarified- we are ready to make this nonalcoholic triple sec.
I’m just going to stir it to combine everything in my mixing glass. First, I will add all the clarified juice- which equaled out to 6 ounces after clarifying, then I will add 2 ounces of the mandarin oleo saccharum, followed by one ounce of the non-alcoholic orange extract.
Then I’m going to stir to combine and taste to see if it needs anything- which I decided it did. I want a little more of a floral accent, so I will add a few drops of orange blossom water- it’s easy to overwhelm, so I just added 3 drops to start. I also wanted to add a bit more acidity, so I added about an eighth of a teaspoon of citric acid for a little boost.
Now all I need to do is bottle it and it's ready to use.
