How Far In Advance Can You Mix Up Margaritas?

Planning a big fiesta for Cinco de Mayo? If so, you'll probably want to do as much prep as you can in advance. It's easy to marinate your carnitas in advance, and assemble your tamales the night before, but cocktails are normally prepared fresh. When it comes to margaritas, however, you can actually get away with making them ahead of your party. According to All Recipes, margaritas can stay fresh for up to three days in the refrigerator. It all comes down to how you store and serve it.

To do so properly, first take a big pitcher and prepare your margarita as you normally would, whether that be from scratch or with a mix, and make sure to not add ice. Doing so will water down your margaritas while they sit in the fridge, and as a result they won't taste as good as when you first made them. When you're ready to serve your margaritas, just give the liquid a good mix, then go ahead and add the ice. For best results, fill the pitcher with oversized cocktail ice either large cubes or spheres to keep it chilled without watering it down.

If you intend on making your margaritas pretty far in advance, consider opting for frozen margaritas instead of margaritas on the rocks, because they can last in the freezer for up to two weeks, All Recipes says. According to Taste of Home, you won't need to alter anything about the recipe — simply stick them in the freezer after you blend them up, and the alcohol will take care of everything else. When you're ready to serve it, it'll still have that slushy consistency thanks to the alcohol.

Unfortunately this doesn't work quite as well with virgin margaritas or recipes with less tequila than normal. It'll just end up freezing into a solid slushy-less brick. If that's the case, you'll have to give it a whirl in the blender before you serve them. As Jair Munoz, owner of Tex-Mex restaurant Javelina, explained to Bon Appétit, it's best to use a generous amount of alcohol in frozen margaritas because it's what allows the slush to hold its shape, both in the freezer and while it's being enjoyed.