Alcohol-free · Agua de Sandía · alcohol-free
Watermelon Agua Fresca
Made with classic simple syrup · Mexico
- highball
- cubes
- blend
Watermelon Agua Fresca
- 8 cups1920 ml seedless watermelon, cut in 1-inch cubes (about 3 lb flesh)
- 5 cups1200 ml cold water (1 1/2 cups for blending, the rest for thinning)
- ⅓ cup80 ml fresh lime juice
- 1 cup240 ml simple syrup, to taste
- Blend the watermelon with 1 1/2 cups of the water until smooth, working in batches if needed.
- Pour into a large pitcher and stir in the rest of the water, the lime juice and the syrup.
- Taste and adjust the lime or syrup, since melons vary a lot. Strain through a sieve if you want it smoother.
- Serve over ice.
Garnish: lime wheel or a small watermelon wedge
The syrup
In this recipe
Classic Simple Syrup1 cup240 ml
Simple syrup is equal parts sugar and water, heated just until the sugar dissolves.
About 1 cup of 1:1 simple syrup equals 3/4 cup sugar and blends into the cold puree instantly. We cut the thinning water by 1/2 cup to make up for the water in the syrup. Add more to taste.
As printed: 3/4-1 1/4 cups granulated sugar stirred into the cold puree (Bayless); 1/2 cup sugar for 6 cups of melon (Mexican Food Journal).
Or use
Watermelon Syrup1½ oz45 ml
Watermelon syrup is fresh watermelon blended with sugar until the sugar dissolves, then strained and brightened with lime.
No blender? Per glass, 1 1/2 oz watermelon syrup + 1/2 oz lime juice + 6 oz cold water over ice. It's lighter-bodied than the pureed original, but tastes of melon year-round.
As printed: Fresh blended watermelon plus sugar.
Where it comes from
Agua de sandía is one of Mexico's classic aguas frescas: ripe fruit blended with water, sweetened, brightened with lime and traditionally served from big glass barrels.
Source: Agua de Sandía, Mexico: One Plate at a Time, Season 6 by Rick Bayless.
Checked against: Rick Bayless: Agua de Sandía · Mexican Food Journal: Watermelon Water (Agua de Sandía)
Gear for this drink
Ninja Professional 72 oz Countertop Blender (BL610)
OXO SteeL Angled Measuring Jigger
Best for Measuring syrup into drinks
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