Mandarin Mango Madness
Updated: Aug 23, 2022
Since my husband and I are bourbon lovers and had a lot of dried mangos around from Costco, we were wondering if we could create an infused cocktail. A little internet reading assured us dried fruit is totally acceptable and works great; in fact, fresh mangos are so soft that they would probably get too mushy. Unlike infused fresh fruits, like pineapple in vodka that marinates for over a month, we were surprised to find a few online recipes with much shorter infusing times using dried fruit. Since bourbon has a stronger flavor than vodka, we were curious as to how it would work and to our surprise, it worked fabulously! The infused bourbon is so delicious and sweet, it can be consumed by itself as an aperitif.
Ingredients (Martini Cocktail):
3 shots of drunken mango bourbon
3 shots of mandarin orange juice (we used fresh juice from Monika's tree but you can use regular orange juice)
Garnishes - infused mangos, fresh (or canned) mandarin oranges, and/or maraschino cherries
Instructions:
Pour ingredients into shaker filled with about 1/4 ice and shake until chilled. Serve in a cocktail glass with garnishes. It can be served in a martini glass or a cocktail glass with a giant ice cube.
How to Make Infused Mangos:
Fill a mason jar 1/4 with dried mangos and pour your favorite bourbon to the top.
Place in a dark cupboard for about 3-5 days, shaking every day. You can do longer or shorter depending on how sweet you want it.
After it is ready, store it in the refrigerator.
The mangos are delicious and can leave you feeling great eaten alone! I keep them them stored in the freezer and they don't freeze but will keep a long time.
Video