The Sake Mojito

Try something exotic and different. Sake is used instead of rum to make this refreshing and light Sake Mojito: sake, sugar, lime and mint.

The warmer weather means it’s time to take the party outside! From the grill to the pool to the park, everyone is starting to pour out into the sunshine. And with every party, barbecue or hang out, you need a party drink. And boy, do I have THE drink for you.

The Sake Mojito.

What is sake?

The other night, the hubby and I were watching “Modern Marvels,” the hubby’s favorite show. They were talking about rice, everything you never knew about rice: how it’s grown, how it’s evolved and the 101+ apparent uses of rice that goes beyond food.

And of course, I learned everything about sake. Sake is made from fermented rice. The brewing process is similar to beer more than wine, and it is a colorless beverage.

Sake is not for the faint at heart, with an alcoholic content of about 15%-18%, compared to beer which is significantly less. I also learned that sake in Japanese refers to any alcoholic drink, but here in U.S. we like to simplify things and refer to sake as the Japanese rice wine.

Sake dates back centuries where the monks began brewing sake for religious ceremonies. And now, you can find hundreds of different varieties of sake, of different qualities and prices, from $6 and up to $400 a bottle, priced here in the U.S.

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What is a mojito?

Mojitos have certainly taken over the US cocktail scene, with it’s many varieties and colors. The mojito is a classic Cuban cocktail made with white rum, sugar, lime juice, soda water, and mint. The mint and lime are muddled, or crushed, with the sugar before adding the rum and soda water.

Bartenders have a muddler, which looks like a mini baseball bat. It has a wide rounded end you use to crush the ingredients together, releasing the juice of the lime and the essence of the mint. If you don’t have or want to buy a muddler, you can use a large wooden dowel or crush with the pestle, if you have a mortar and pestle.

How to make a sake mojito

You begin making your sake mojito like you do with a regular mojito, crushing fresh mint leaves with chopped up lime and a bit of sugar. Mix in your sake. Do your dance while you shake and strain the liquid into your glass. Then top it with a splash of club soda and cheers!

This drink goes down like lemonade. The sugar and club soda helps the sake go down nice and smooth, which can be deceiving, so beware! It can go straight to your head pretty quickly – yes I’m speaking from experience!

And if you are making this for a party and don’t want to be crushing mint and lime all night, drink by drink, the hubby came up with a great solution. Put the sake and mint combo in the blender and pulse until coarsely chopped.

Strain and pour into each glass, topping each with club soda. Kanpai!

So with all of this talk of booze, you’d think I’m an expert or drink a lot. Honestly, the first time I drank sake was with my husband at a sushi restaurant. I wanted to impress my then-boyfriend and smiled as I drank the warm liquid and let it burn all the way down my throat. Mmmmm!

No, I’m not really a big drinker. I am a light-weight when it comes to alcoholic drinks. I don’t do beer and don’t care for wine. Most of the time I prefer a margaritas or Mai Tai. I don’t care for the taste of alcohol or wine, and most drinks put me to sleep, so I keep to my 1-drink limit. Yes, I’m a cheap date.

But I really liked this sake mojito. It goes down smooth and tastes fabulous. I hope you enjoy it, too!

I featured this drink on my guest blog post at Just One Cookbook. Nami is the voice behind this beautiful blog where she features her fabulous Japanese recipes. You will drool over her pictures and you will learn everything you need to know about Japanese cooking.

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Yield: 1 glass

The Sake Mojito

Print

Try something exotic and different. Sake is used instead of rum to make this refreshing and light Sake Mojito: sake, sugar, lime and mint.

Prep Time 3 minutes

Total Time 3 minutes

Ingredients

• 7 leaves of fresh mint
• 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
• ½ lime, cut into small pieces
• 5 oz sake
• ½ cup ice
• 1 oz club soda

Instructions

1. In a cocktail shaker crush together mint, sugar and lime.
2. Add sake and club soda and shake.
3. Strain liquid and pour into a glass filled with ice.
4. Top with mint and serve.

Notes

Serving Suggestions: If making for a crowd, Add sake and ingredients from step 1 for quantity of drinks needed in a blender. Pulse until coarsely chopped and just combined. Strain liquid into glasses and top each with 1 oz of club soda & a sprig of mint.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

1

Serving Size:

1 glass
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 212Total Fat: 0gSodium: 15mgCarbohydrates: 11.6gFiber: 0gSugar: 4gProtein: 0.5g

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