This spicy beer drink originally comes from Northern Mexico, but can be found almost everywhere in the country. The name loosely translates to “my chilled beer” and is a perfect accompaniment to any Mexican snack like pambazos, tlayudas, nachos, pieces of enchilado, or guacamole dip. Serve these at your next Mexican fiesta for a truly authentic beverage.
The origins of the drink go back to the 1940’s when the practice of adding hot sauce and lime to beer became popular in Mexico.
Some grocery stores offer premade michelada mix that you can add to beer for an instant michelada. Most are garbage. You are much better off buying all the ingredients yourself and making your own michelada mix if you are planning on mixing many drinks. Fresher is better, so make your michelada mix as close to the time of serving if possible.
You can use a light or a dark Mexican beer depending on your preference. You can also use an American brand of beer if you prefer. Some people believe that the name “michelada” came from American beer recipe using Michelob in the 80’s.
There are many variations on this simple recipe and this recipe draws on some of the best from southern Chiapas, Oaxaca, and Mexico City. You can adjust the proportions in this recipe depending on personal preferences to make the drink spicier or milder.
Ingredients
1 ice cold Mexican beer: Corona or Negra Modela for example
2 tablespoons of course salt
1 tablespoon of chili powder
2 tablespoons of fresh lime juice
1-2 dashes of your favorite hot sauce
1 dash of soy sauce
1 dash of Worcestershire sauce
Ice
Black pepper
Lime wedge for garnish
Assembly
1. Mix together the salt and chili powder on a small plate. Rim a beer glass with a little lime juice and then dip in the salt and chili mixture to cover the top of the glass.
2. Fill mug with ice (yes, ice in a beer is popular in Mexico and other parts of Latin America).
3. Add lime juice, hot sauce, soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, and a pinch of black pepper.
4. Slowly pour in beer. The salt on the rim will cause the beer to foam up, so be careful while adding beer.
5. Stir. Enjoy.
If you prefer a spicier beverage, you can add more hot sauce or chili powder. Every restaurant seems to have their own variation on this beverage and you can all the proportions of the quantities depending on your own tastes.
Timothy Dzurilla - Dzurilla has been writing about food and food culture for 7 years for various on and off line newspapers. Currently in graduate school ...
