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This margarita salt recipe makes the best margarita salt rim! This zesty garnish takes any cocktail from meh to a masterpiece. Here’s how to make it.

Looking to amp up your margaritas? This margarita salt is the best way to transform your glass from meh to marvelous. And it’s seriously simple too! Alex and I made this margarita salt as part of our Frozen Margaritas, but we realized that it would be just about perfect for any you decide to make. From now on, we’ll be adding it to our Classic Margarita and Lemon Margarita (and maybe even our Paloma, too). Keep reading for all there is to know about margarita salt!

What is margarita salt?

Margarita salt is the salt added to the rim of a margarita glass. Why is a margarita served with salt? Well, salt intensifies the sweet and sour flavors in the drink. It makes the sour seem brighter, making the overall drink experience that much more pleasurable.

There are lots of store-bought brands of margarita salt out there. But why buy your own when you can make it at home? It’s seriously easy to make, and you don’t end up with random half-used containers lying around.

How to make margarita salt

This recipe could not be simpler (literally). Here’s how to make margarita salt:

Place kosher salt, lime zest and orange zest on a cutting board. (Scroll down to the recipe for the exact quantities).
Crush them together using a rolling pin.

That’s it! Now, some recipes will call for drying out the citrus zest in the oven or doing other fancy things. In our testing, we found it’s not necessary: it really is this simple. Store your margarita salt in a sealed container at room temperature for up to 1 month. (It will probably last longer than that; we’re being conservative here.)

How to make the perfect margarita salt rim

You might think that making a margarita salt rim wouldn’t have tips and tricks: but like anything in food and drink, it does! Here are our tips to making the perfect rim:

Spread the salt on a plate in an even layer.
Take a lime wedge and cut a notch in the middle: then slide it around the rim of the glass. This perfectly moistens the glass rim without having to use your fingers!
To rim the glass, you’ll want the salt on the outside of the glass only, not the inside where it can fall into the drink. To do this, tilt the glass so that only the outside edge goes into the salt.
Shake off any loose salt into the sink.

What kind of salt for a margarita is best?

The best type of salt to use for a margarita we’ve found is kosher salt. We like the size of the grains and the flavor that it brings. If you’d like to use sea salt for this recipe, you can do this as well. However, do not even think about using iodized table salt! The flavor of this type of salt is much too intense for rimming your drinks.

Looking for easy cocktail recipes?

Here are a few of our favorite cocktail recipes:

This recipe is…

Vegetarian, gluten-free, vegan, plant-based, and dairy-free.