10-Minute Strawberry Margarita (5 ingredients, Blended)

This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy.

This strawberry margarita blends frozen strawberries, silver tequila, Cointreau, fresh lime juice, and agave into a thick, slushy, salted-rim cocktail. No margarita mix, no artificial pink coloring, 5 ingredients, and only 10 minutes from blender to glass.

Tell Me More About This Strawberry Margarita

• A 10-Minute Party Drink. One blender, no shaker, no simple syrup to cook, no straining, no chilling time. I load the blender, salt two rims, and pour. That's it! If you like a five-minute cocktail with the same low effort, try my passion fruit margarita and blood orange margarita next!
• Real strawberries do all the work. Frozen berries give you the color, the flavor, and the slush all at once. I do not use strawberry syrup, artificial dye, or neon-pink bottled mix. Everything I use here is natural! You can almost call this margarita healthy! 🙂
• No margarita mix. I love using fresh lime juice and agave to control the sweetness and acidity.
• The texture is thick and scoopable. Because the strawberries are frozen, you need far less ice, which means less dilution and more actual strawberry flavor in every sip.
• It is easy to scale up. Double or triple it for a crowd. It's a party favorite for cookouts and Cinco de Mayo parties, right alongside the recipes in my 45 best Mexican recipes roundup.
• The sweetness is yours to control. One ounce of agave is my starting point. Taste and adjust before you pour.
• That salted rim. Sea salt against sweet strawberry is the contrast that makes each sip taste balanced instead of like dessert.

The Ingredients I Recommend

Here are my notes about the ingredients for the strawberry margarita. For the exact amounts + directions, skip to the recipe card below or continue reading for helpful tips!

• Frozen strawberries. I use 2 cups of plain frozen whole or sliced strawberries with no added sugar. Do not thaw them. If all you have is fresh, first hull and freeze them on a sheet pan for at least 4 hours.
• Silver (blanco) tequila. I recommend a silver (blanco) tequila for this recipe. It is clean, bright, and lets the strawberry and lime flavors shine. I make the same choice in my blood orange margarita and my white Christmas margarita.
• Agave syrup. I use agave syrup because it blends right into cold drinks and complements tequila naturally. You can adjust the amount depending on how sweet your strawberries are and how sweet you like your drinks. Start with the amount I suggest, then taste and adjust after blending if you need to. If you don't have it, use honey or maple syrup, though both bring their own flavor.
• Orange liqueur. I used Cointreau, but triple sec works and costs less. Grand Marnier will give you a slightly richer, more orange-peel flavor.
• Freshly squeezed lime juice. Fresh lime juice provides the acidity that keeps the drink from tasting flat or too sweet. You should skip the bottled kind. Bottled lime juice lacks the brightness needed to balance the strawberry and tequila.
• Sea salt for the rim should be coarse rather than fine. Coarse crystals cling to the glass properly and give you a little burst of salt with each sip instead of a solid salty stripe. Flaky sea salt works. So does the chili salt or Tajín I use on my passion fruit margarita if you want heat. It also adds a pretty contrast against the bright red margarita and makes the whole thing look more special.
• Ice. Just 1 cup. Its only job is to help the blender catch and to firm up the texture. More ice than this and you lose strawberry flavor.
• Fresh strawberries for garnish. Purely for looks, but I do think a berry on the rim makes the drink feel quite elevated!

How to Make a Strawberry Margarita

• Rim the glasses. Run a lime wedge around each rim, then dip into sea salt and rotate gently to coat. Set the glasses aside.
• Load the blender. Add the frozen strawberries, ice, tequila, orange liqueur, lime juice, and agave syrup to a high-speed blender.
• Blend until thick and smooth. Stop once to scrape down the sides. You want a dense, even slush with no ice chunks left.
• Adjust if needed. Too thick to blend? Add 1 to 2 tablespoons cold water and pulse. Too thin? Add a small handful of ice and pulse again.
• Pour and garnish. Pour right away, letting the mixture mound slightly for a soft dome. Add a fresh strawberry to each rim and serve immediately.

Making a Pitcher for a Crowd

For 8 servings, multiply everything by 4 and blend in two batches, since 8 cups of frozen strawberries will not fit in most blenders at once. Pour both batches into a pitcher, stir well, and keep the pitcher in the freezer until your guests arrive. It will firm up but not freeze solid because of the alcohol. Give it a stir before pouring. During the summer cookouts, I set it out next to my Mexican corn dip and a big bowl of Mexican street corn pasta salad. 

Can I Make a Non-Alcoholic Version (A Mocktail)? 

Yes. Leave out the tequila and orange liqueur. Blend the frozen strawberries and ice with lime juice, agave, and about 3 ounces of orange juice or white grape juice in place of the spirits. For a fizzy, alcohol-free option instead, try my strawberry mocktail, which uses muddled berries, basil, and sparkling water.

How To Get the Thick, Smooth Texture

• I use frozen strawberries, not fresh ones. Frozen strawberries create a thick, velvety texture. Because they are frozen at peak ripeness, they also deliver strong strawberry flavor and vibrant color year-round.
• Frozen fruit keeps the flavor strong. Using frozen fruit reduces dilution compared to relying only on ice, so you get a richer, more concentrated drink.
• I add ice, too. A combination of frozen strawberries and ice creates the ideal balance between thickness and pourability.
• You should not use only one or the other. Using only frozen fruit can produce a sorbet-like texture that is too dense. Using only ice can dilute both the flavor and the color.
• Here is what the mix of both gives you. The blend produces a smooth, thick drink that mounds slightly when you pour it but stays easy to sip.

Variations

• Spicy strawberry margarita. Blend in a few slices of fresh jalapeño with the seeds removed, or rim the glass with Tajín instead of plain sea salt.
• Strawberry basil. Add 4 or 5 fresh basil leaves to the blender. If that combination sounds good to you, you'll also like my strawberry mocktail, which uses the same pairing.
• Strawberry mango. Swap ½ cup of the frozen strawberries for frozen mango chunks.
• Mixed berry. Swap half the strawberries for frozen raspberries or blackberries for a deeper color and a tarter flavor.
• Smoky. Replace 1 ounce of the tequila with mezcal.
• Skinny version. Cut the agave to half an ounce and add an extra squeeze of lime.

More Cocktail Recipes to Try

• Passion Fruit Margarita
• Blood Orange Margarita
• White Christmas Margarita
• Cucumber Gimlet
• Sugar Cookie Martini
• Christmas Cranberry Mimosa
• Red Sangria with Mixed Berries
• Strawberry Mocktail

If you make this strawberry margarita, I'd love to hear how it turns out in the comments below - or if you make yours a little differently! Julia