Name: Homemade Authentic Michelada Recipe
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 5 min
Ingredients: 1 cup Ice (one cup); 4 oz Clamato; 2 oz Lime juice; Tabasco, Tapatio or Valentina Hot Sauce (to taste); Pepper (one small pinch); 1-2 drops worcestershire sauce; Tajin (to taste + plus enough to rim your glass); 2-3 Lime wedges; Rimming Dip (enough to rim your glass); Chamoy (to taste); Your favorite Mexican beer (1 can or bottle)

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Do you love micheladas? I know I do! In fact, it’s one of my favorite ways to enjoy a beer. Let’s be real. Mexican beer is delicious on its own. But with the tang of spices and tomato juice of a michelada, it is even more delicious! Therefore, today, I will share a tasty and authentic michelada recipe with you!

Sure this recipe is delicious and authentic, but it is also super easy to make! As a matter of fact, you can make this michelada recipe with ingredients you may already have at home. So, let’s get to it. But first…

What is the difference between a chelada and michelada?

A chelada is a prepared Mexican beer. It contains a squeeze of lime, and a salt (or Tajin) rim. It is simple but delicious. This preparation brings out the wonderful flavors of any and every Mexican beer.

Learn how to prepare a chelada here.

A michelada contains lime juice and a salt (or Tajin) rim as well. However, micheladas take it a step further by adding tomato juice, hot sauce, savory spices, and other condiments.

Therefore, both micheladas and cheladas contain lime juice and a salt (or Tajin) rim. But only micheladas contain tomato juice.

What type of tomato juice should I use?

As I write about tomato juice, I am already salivating. It is so tasty and savory. But which type should you use? Well, you can use Clamato or V8. Both types of tomato juice taste amazing with Mexican beer! These are two brands that I have personally used for years.

Clamato will add a fishy taste, because it is a blend of clam juice and tomato juice. It is delicious. A michelada prepared with clamato pairs amazingly well with Mexican seafood, or mariscos. Therefore, Clamato is even more savory, salty, and flavorful.

If you are not into seafood, then V8 is a fantastic option. It is tasty tomato juice, without any clam juice. It is a bit lighter in taste. That is, it is not as savory as Clamato. However, it still has tons of delicious flavor!

Tomato juice is used in other cocktails, as well. Not just micheladas! In fact, a lot of people are familiar with Bloody Marys.

Is Bloody Mary mix the same as michelada mix?

A Bloody Mary is a cocktail made up of vodka, tomato juice, and savory spices. A michelada is a cocktail made up of beer, tomato juice, savory spices, lime juice, and so on. Therefore, the Bloody Mary mix and michelada mixes are quite similar. While the bases are similar, the drinks are different. The difference boils down to the base spirit: vodka or beer.

What is the best beer to make a michelada with?

A michelada is indeed a Mexican drink. Therefore, Mexican beer is the best type of beer to use for micheladas! You can read my breakdown on the top 10 Mexican beers here.

Take it from me. I had Micheladas with German beer at Oktoberfest one year. It just wasn’t the same. I think I should just stick to Mexican beers in micheladas from now on.

How to Make an Authentic Michelada Recipe

As I shared above, you will need, at minimum, lime juice, salt or Tajin, tomato juice, and Mexican beer to make a michelada. If you want to make it even tastier, then you should also include Mexican hot sauce, such as Valentina, Tabasco, or Tapatio. This will add the spicy aspect. To add the savory aspect, you will also need pepper and Worcestershire sauce. Finally, no michelada would be complete without rim dip and chamoy! The chamoy and rim dip truly brings out the authentic Mexican flavor.

Prepare your beer glass

For best results, add your beer glass to the freezer while you gather your ingredients. Once ready, dip your glass in Chamoy or rim paste. Then, set the paste or Chamoy with Tajin or salt.

Build your cocktail

After you have prepared your glass, it’s time to build the cocktail! Add tomato juice, plus all of the sauces and condiments: Mexican hot sauce, Worcestershire sauce, lime juice, pepper, chamoy, and a bit more Tajin to taste. Give it all a good stir with your bar spoon.

At this point, you can add ice if you prefer.

Then, tilt your glass and slowly pour in your Mexican beer! Tilting the glass and pouring slowly prevents the beer from foaming up. Now, you are ready to enjoy.

What should I drink my authentic michelada recipe with?

I love to enjoy this michelada in many different ways. For example, I enjoy this on weekends with carne asada. As I mentioned above, it also pairs fantastically with mariscos.

In addition, I like to enjoy it on special occasions, like on game day! This drink is easy to enjoy because it is so straightforward to make. Micheladas honestly pair well with different types of Mexican food. For example, you can enjoy a michelada with tacos, caldos, and the list goes on.

More About Micheladas

If you’d like to learn more about the history behind the michelada, then check out this super informative video here.

Pressed for time? or on the go? Whenever I want to enjoy a delicious cocktail but don’t have the time to mix it all up, then I just the I Love Micheladas premade mix. It’s tasty and authentic!