A kiwi cucumber margarita with tequila blanco, fresh lime, muddled kiwi, and thin slices of cucumber. Fresh, green, and just the right amount of sweet.

A green cocktail garnished with a cucumber ribbon and kiwi slice, surrounded by fresh kiwi, lime, cucumber slices, and a bowl of fruit on a light surface.

About this recipe

This kiwi cucumber margarita is a fresh-fruit cocktail which gives you the flavor of properly ripe kiwi and real cucumber.
A few things make this drink work. Kiwi is much more acidic than most people realize, so you need the simple syrup to balance it out. Cucumber brings water content and coolness but almost no sweetness, so it doesn’t fight with the sugar. Fresh lime juice brings out the cucumber and plays nice with the kiwi. And then this all ties together with a tequila base.
The rim is where you get to choose the vibe of your cocktail. Salt with fine lime zest keeps it classic margarita, savory and bright. Sugar with lime zest tips it sweeter and more tropical. I usually go salt, but both are lovely.

Two green cocktails garnished with kiwi slices and cucumber spirals sit on coasters. Fresh kiwis, cucumbers, lime wedges, and a bowl of limes are nearby. White flowers in a vase are blurred in the background.

A peek at some of the key ingredients

Tequila blanco. Go for 100% agave if you can, the flavor is smoother.
Fresh lime juice. Always fresh, never bottled.
Ripe kiwi. This is the most important ingredient choice you’ll make. A ripe kiwi should give a little when you press it gently, like a ripe peach. Underripe kiwi is super tart and not very nice. If your kiwi is rock hard, leave it on the counter for a few days.
Cucumber. English or Persian cucumbers are the best here because they have thinner skins and fewer seeds. If you only have a regular cucumber, peel it first, otherwise the skin can be bitter.
Triple sec. Standard margarita ingredient. Cointreau if you have it, any triple sec if you don’t.
Simple syrup. Kiwi has more acid than sugar, so the simple syrup brings the sweet.
Fine lime zest. For the rim, use a microplane on a fresh lime to get very fine zest.

Method

Mix the salt (or sugar) with the lime zest on a small plate.
Run a lime wedge around the rim of a rocks glass, then dip the rim in the lime salt to coat.
Add the chopped kiwi and cucumber slices to a cocktail shaker.

A glass jar with mashed kiwi and a muddler inside sits on a white table, surrounded by whole and sliced kiwis, a glass of water, an empty glass, and a vase of white flowers in the background.

Muddle firmly, but don’t go crazy. You want the fruit broken down but not pulverized, otherwise the kiwi seeds break up and add bitterness.

Kiwi juice is being poured through a strainer into a glass with ice, set on a small plate. Fresh kiwi and limes are in the background, and the glass rim is coated with salt or sugar.

Add the tequila, lime juice, triple sec, and simple syrup to the shaker. Fill with ice and shake hard. Double strain into your rimmed rocks glass filled with fresh ice.

Garnish with a cucumber ribbon and a kiwi slice.

A green cocktail garnished with a kiwi slice and twisted cucumber sits on a coaster, surrounded by sliced cucumber, lime wedges, and a bowl of whole kiwi and limes.

Tips

Make sure your kiwi fruit is ripe!
Golden kiwi works too and gives a sweeter, less tart flavor.
To make the cucumber ribbon garnish, use a vegetable peeler down the side of a cucumber to shave off a long thin ribbon. Curl it inside the glass before adding ice.
If you want to make these for a crowd, muddle the kiwi and cucumber together in a small bowl first, then divide between shakers. Everything else can go straight into the shaker per drink.
For a gin version, swap the tequila for a London dry gin. Kiwi and gin are a classic pairing because the botanicals in gin echo the grassy notes in the kiwi.

More margaritas to try

Mango Chili Margarita – a sweet and spicy margarita with muddled green chili
Frozen Peach Margarita – a blended, tropical margarita with a chili lime rim
Strawberry Margarita On The Rocks – a fresh strawberry version with a homemade strawberry syrup
Cardamom Margarita – a warmly spiced margarita with cardamom simple syrup
Pineapple Coconut Margarita – a tropical margarita with cream of coconut and toasted coconut rim

Kiwi Cucumber Margarita

About this recipe

A peek at some of the key ingredients

Method

Tips

More margaritas to try