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Greet the weekend with this homemade Bloody Mary Recipe loaded up with every savory, crunchy, pickled thing you can get your hands on. The mix is super easy to whip up the night before; when it’s time for brunch, this deliciously cheerful cocktail is raring to go.
What is a Bloody Mary?
I’ve been making bloody marys my entire adult life. It’s one of my all-time favorite cocktails because it’s not sweet and I adore all the snacks, I mean garnishes, that come along with it.
As a classically-trained chef with a few decades of cocktail-making experience under my belt, I have all the best tips, tricks, and advice to take your next Bloody Mary over the top.
Start with a spicy homemade mix, then get super creative with your garnishes. If a Bloody Mary is the ultimate brunch cocktail, why not add bacon and eggs? Or maybe try every pickled vegetable under the son, or vodka-soaked sausage sticks.
I love seasoned salt on the rim, but Tajin is a good choice too. Or use regular coarse salt. This recipe checks all the right boxes: a perfectly seasoned (and super easy) Bloody Mary mix with ample amounts of horseradish, celery salt, and enough spice to keep things interesting. The recipe makes enough for 12 cocktails.
Table of Contents
Bloody Mary Cocktail Ingredients
At a Glance: Here is a quick snapshot of what ingredients are in this recipe.
Please see the recipe card below for specific quantities.
- Best Tomato Juice for Bloody Mary: Personally, I love the little extra umami flavor of Clamato which is made with a hint of clam juice. If that’s not your thing, go straight-up tomato juice.
- Vodka: The best vodka for Bloody Marys is the one you like. No need to buy the fanciest, most top-shelf vodka here; the bold tomato mix will overpower it. However, that doesn’t mean that you can’t use a pepper-infused vodka for a little kick!
- Celery salt: You make homemade celery salt (from leftover celery leaves) or use store-bought.
- Hot sauce: Optional depending on your need for heat. I prefer Cholula.
- Garnishes: Classic garnishes for a Bloody Mary are typically celery ribs, green olives, maybe an extra lemon or lime wedge. But I like to add heartier stuff, too: beef sticks (soaked in vodka if you have time), a skewer of cheese, pickled garlic, and pickled green beans.
How to Make a Bloody Mary Cocktail
- In a large serving pitcher, whisk together Clamato, vodka, lemon juice, Worchestershire sauce, horseradish, celery salt, pepper, and hot sauce. Cover and refrigerate until flavors meld, about 2 hours.
- Stir bloody marys to recombine and serve over ice in chilled collins glasses. Garnish with a stalk of celery and other items as desired.
Best Bloody Mary Recipe Tips
- Yield: This recipe makes 12 cocktails.
- Storage: Store leftover Bloody Mary mix in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
- Make ahead: Mix everything together at least a couple hours before you plan on serving. Or better yet, make it the night before (even up to 24 hours ahead) and stow it in the fridge to let the ingredients mingle.
- Keep the mix separate: In case some people want a lower-octane brunch cocktail, make the tomato mix but keep the vodka out. Let everyone add the amount of spirits they prefer later.
Bloody Mary Drink Variations
- Virgin: You can drink the mix as-is, without the booze, and it’s delicious!
- The works: If you can dream it, do it. Make your Bloody Mary a salad in a glass by reading the refrigerator. Garnish with chilled poached shrimp, beef jerky, lil’smokies, cooked bacon, hard-boiled eggs, pickled asparagus, radishes, pickle spears, pepperoncini, fried chicken, anything!
- Bloody Maria: Switches out the vodka for tequila.
- Red Snapper: Use gin instead of vodka, and that’s what you get.
Frequently Asked Questions
The best vodka might be the one you already have in your cabinet. Since it’s going to be served with a spicy tomato juice, you don’t need a high-quality vodka to savor. Personally, I love the spicy kick of Absolut Peppar, a black-pepper-spiked vodka that was designed with a Bloody Mary in mind.
You can flavor your cocktail however you want, but the original Bloody Mary was made with vodka, tomato juice, Worcestershire sauce, lemon juice, Tabasco, celery salt, and black pepper. In this version, I also add horseradish.
This cocktail is supposedly named after Queen Mary Tudor, a staunch Catholic who brutally executed Protestants during her reign of terror in England in the 1500’s. If you want to learn more, I highly recommend The Last Tudor by Philippa Gregory which covers Mary’s time on the throne. Ms. Gregory writes historical fiction, not nonfiction, but it’s an eye-opening read nonetheless.
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Bloody Mary Recipe
Ingredients
- 48 ounces Clamato or tomato juice (6 cups, see note 1)
- 2 cups vodka (see note 2)
- 4 ounces lemon juice (from 3 lemons)
- 1 ounce Worcestershire sauce
- 4 teaspoons prepared horseradish
- ¼ teaspoon celery salt (see note 3)
- 2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon hot sauce plus more, to taste
- 12 celery ribs for garnish
Instructions
- In a large serving pitcher, whisk together Clamato, vodka, lemon juice, Worchestershire sauce, horseradish, celery salt, pepper, and hot sauce. Cover and refrigerate until flavors meld, about 2 hours.
- Stir bloody marys to recombine and serve over ice in chilled collins glasses. Garnish with a stalk of celery and anything else that sounds good.
Recipe Video
Notes
- Clamato or tomato juice: Personally, I love the little extra umami flavor of Clamato which is made with a hint of clam juice. If that’s not your thing, go straight-up tomato juice.
- Vodka: The best vodka for Bloody Marys is the one you like. No need to buy the fanciest, most top-shelf vodka here; the bold tomato mix will overpower it. However, that doesn’t mean that you can’t use a pepper-infused vodka for a little kick!
- Celery salt: You make homemade celery salt (from leftover celery leaves) or use store-bought.
- Yield: This recipe makes 12 cocktails.
- Storage: Store leftover Bloody Mary mix in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
Nutrition
Meggan Hill is a classically-trained chef and professional writer. Her meticulously-tested recipes and detailed tutorials bring confidence and success to home cooks everywhere. Meggan has been featured on NPR, HuffPost, FoxNews, LA Times, and more.
This is absolutely delicious! I made the celery salt from your other recipe and had been looking forward to using it. IT IS SO GOOD. This recipe is amazing.
This is a great recipe. Just for grins, try using low sodium V8 juice. For my tastebuds, it has a heftier flavor and better consistency than other mixers. Plus the more you drink, the more veggies you consume. A win-win.