Spicy and Numbing Sichuan Bloody Mary
By Sasha MarxPublished on May 25, 2017
Yield
6 cocktails
Ingredients
Optional garnishes
Chinese sausage (lop cheong) water chestnuts celery ribs lemon or lime wedges pickled vegetables steamed shrimpBefore You Begin
Broad bean chili paste, also known as doubanjiang, is a spicy, salty paste made from fermented broad beans, soybeans, chilis, salt, rice, and various spices. It is a staple in Sichuan cuisine, where it provides rich meatiness and heat. It can be found in Chinese markets or online.
Chinese sausage, also known by its Cantonese name lop cheong, is a dried, smoked, hard pork sausage usually seasoned with rose-infused rice wine and soy sauce, giving it great sweet and salty flavor. Here it's an optional garnish. It can be found in Chinese markets or online.
Doing this infusion in a sealed bag in warm water speeds up the process considerably, without any risk of evaporating our precious alcohol. You can do this with a sous vide device or simply with a Dutch oven and a thermometer. We also provide instructions for a traditional room-temperature infusion on the counter. This recipe can be easily doubled (or tripled!) depending on your Bloody Mary needs. A standard cocktail shaker will fit up to two servings. Cocktail recipes are classically presented in fluid ounces and measured with a jigger; in this recipe, we also list ingredients in fluid ounces when it comes time to shake the cocktails.
Instructions
- Use sous vide device to heat water bath to 149 degrees F/65 degrees C. Meanwhile, combine vodka and peppercorns in 1-quart zipper-lock freezer bag. Press out as much air as possible from bag and seal. Gently lower bag into water bath, allowing remaining air bubbles to rise to top of bag (do not let go of bag). Reopen 1 corner of zipper, release remaining air pockets, and seal bag fully. Clip top of bag to side of water bath container. Cook for 30 minutes. Taste vodka. It should be assertively mouth-numbing. If it is not, return bag to water bath and cook up to 10 minutes longer. Remove bag from water bath and strain vodka through fine-mesh strainer into heat-resistant airtight container; discard peppercorns. Let vodka cool for at least 10 minutes, then cover and refrigerate until ready to use. If cooking on stovetop: Heat 4 quarts water in Dutch oven over medium heat to 160 degrees F/71 degrees C. Meanwhile, combine vodka and peppercorns in 1-quart zipper-lock freezer bag. Press out as much air as possible from bag and seal. Gently lower bag into Dutch oven, allowing remaining air bubbles to rise to top of bag (do not let go of bag). Reopen 1 corner of zipper, release remaining air pockets, and seal bag fully. Clip top of bag to side of Dutch oven. Cook for 30 minutes, adjusting heat as necessary to maintain temperature between 140 degrees F/60 degrees C and 160 degrees F/71 degrees C. Taste vodka. It should be assertively mouth-numbing. If it is not, return bag to water bath and cook up to 10 minutes longer. Remove bag from water bath and strain vodka through fine-mesh strainer into heat-resistant airtight container; discard peppercorns. Let vodka cool for at least 10 minutes, then cover and refrigerate until ready to use. If infusing at room temperature: Combine vodka and peppercorns in airtight container and place container in 50- to 70-degree F/10- to 21-degree C location away from direct sunlight. Let vodka infuse for 4 to 7 days. (Don’t be alarmed if mixture turns cloudy during this time.) After 4 days, taste vodka daily until it has reached desired flavor. It should be assertively mouth-numbing.
- Stir tomato juice, chili paste, oyster sauce, lemon juice, vinegar, and salt together in large pitcher. If not using immediately, cover and refrigerate for up to 24 hours.
- Combine ¾ cup (6 fluid ounces) tomato juice mixture, 3 tablespoons (1½ fluid ounces) peppercorn-infused vodka, and ¼ cup ice cubes in cocktail shaker and vigorously shake for 30 seconds. Strain into highball glass over ice. (If your chili paste is particularly chunky, you can use a fine-mesh strainer instead of a standard cocktail strainer.) Garnish as desired and serve immediately.
if using a sous vide device
for each cocktail
Yield
6 cocktailsIngredients
Optional garnishes
Ingredients
Optional garnishes
Ingredients
Optional garnishes
Why This Recipe Works
Sichuan cuisine may be famous for its use of fiery chili oil, but the ingredient that makes Sichuan dishes unique—everything from Chongqing chicken to mapo tofu—isn’t a spicy chile. And despite their name, Sichuan peppercorns aren’t even peppercorns. They’re actually the dried seed husks from a small Chinese citrus tree called the prickly ash. And instead of the burn we get from the capsaicin in chiles, Sichuan peppercorns contribute a unique tingling or buzzing sensation in the mouth, not unlike how it feels to sip a carbonated beverage. The tingling is caused by a pungent compound called sanshool, which acts on receptors in the mouth that usually respond to touch. Spicy and numbing Sichuan chili oil is known as málà, as it combines numbing Sichuan peppercorns (má: tingling, numbing) and spicy chiles (là: hot, spicy). We wanted to bring that numbing heat to a brunch cocktail, the Bloody Mary. A good Bloody is all about balancing sweet, spicy, and savory elements in a drink that keeps you coming back for more. The classic source of umami in a Bloody Mary is Worcestershire sauce, which gets its savoriness from anchovies. Here we replace it with two potent sources of meatiness: oyster sauce and broad bean chili paste (doubanjiang). And to deliver the mouth-numbing effects of Sichuan peppercorns, we infuse just enough of them into the vodka to create a slow-building mouth (and if you have more than one, head) buzz. Day drinking just got a lot more fun. Photography by Kevin White
Food Styling by Catrine Kelty
Before You Begin
Broad bean chili paste, also known as doubanjiang, is a spicy, salty paste made from fermented broad beans, soybeans, chilis, salt, rice, and various spices. It is a staple in Sichuan cuisine, where it provides rich meatiness and heat. It can be found in Chinese markets or online.
Chinese sausage, also known by its Cantonese name lop cheong, is a dried, smoked, hard pork sausage usually seasoned with rose-infused rice wine and soy sauce, giving it great sweet and salty flavor. Here it's an optional garnish. It can be found in Chinese markets or online.
Doing this infusion in a sealed bag in warm water speeds up the process considerably, without any risk of evaporating our precious alcohol. You can do this with a sous vide device or simply with a Dutch oven and a thermometer. We also provide instructions for a traditional room-temperature infusion on the counter. This recipe can be easily doubled (or tripled!) depending on your Bloody Mary needs. A standard cocktail shaker will fit up to two servings. Cocktail recipes are classically presented in fluid ounces and measured with a jigger; in this recipe, we also list ingredients in fluid ounces when it comes time to shake the cocktails.
Instructions
- Use sous vide device to heat water bath to 149 degrees F/65 degrees C. Meanwhile, combine vodka and peppercorns in 1-quart zipper-lock freezer bag. Press out as much air as possible from bag and seal. Gently lower bag into water bath, allowing remaining air bubbles to rise to top of bag (do not let go of bag). Reopen 1 corner of zipper, release remaining air pockets, and seal bag fully. Clip top of bag to side of water bath container. Cook for 30 minutes. Taste vodka. It should be assertively mouth-numbing. If it is not, return bag to water bath and cook up to 10 minutes longer. Remove bag from water bath and strain vodka through fine-mesh strainer into heat-resistant airtight container; discard peppercorns. Let vodka cool for at least 10 minutes, then cover and refrigerate until ready to use. If cooking on stovetop: Heat 4 quarts water in Dutch oven over medium heat to 160 degrees F/71 degrees C. Meanwhile, combine vodka and peppercorns in 1-quart zipper-lock freezer bag. Press out as much air as possible from bag and seal. Gently lower bag into Dutch oven, allowing remaining air bubbles to rise to top of bag (do not let go of bag). Reopen 1 corner of zipper, release remaining air pockets, and seal bag fully. Clip top of bag to side of Dutch oven. Cook for 30 minutes, adjusting heat as necessary to maintain temperature between 140 degrees F/60 degrees C and 160 degrees F/71 degrees C. Taste vodka. It should be assertively mouth-numbing. If it is not, return bag to water bath and cook up to 10 minutes longer. Remove bag from water bath and strain vodka through fine-mesh strainer into heat-resistant airtight container; discard peppercorns. Let vodka cool for at least 10 minutes, then cover and refrigerate until ready to use. If infusing at room temperature: Combine vodka and peppercorns in airtight container and place container in 50- to 70-degree F/10- to 21-degree C location away from direct sunlight. Let vodka infuse for 4 to 7 days. (Don’t be alarmed if mixture turns cloudy during this time.) After 4 days, taste vodka daily until it has reached desired flavor. It should be assertively mouth-numbing.
- Stir tomato juice, chili paste, oyster sauce, lemon juice, vinegar, and salt together in large pitcher. If not using immediately, cover and refrigerate for up to 24 hours.
- Combine ¾ cup (6 fluid ounces) tomato juice mixture, 3 tablespoons (1½ fluid ounces) peppercorn-infused vodka, and ¼ cup ice cubes in cocktail shaker and vigorously shake for 30 seconds. Strain into highball glass over ice. (If your chili paste is particularly chunky, you can use a fine-mesh strainer instead of a standard cocktail strainer.) Garnish as desired and serve immediately.
if using a sous vide device
for each cocktail
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