Fresh Pomegranate Martini

Fresh Pomegranate Martini: our favorite pomegranate juice cocktail recipe! It's a perfect combination of tart, sweet and refreshing.

My family grows pomegranates and other crops in central California, so I've got lots of pomegranate recipes to share. Each year we invite lots of friends to our Home Ranch to squeeze pomegranates for juice when the fruit us perfectly ripe, and we freeze it to use throughout the year. My entire family enjoys the flavor of pomegranate with a splash of citrus, so that's what we use here.

Storing Fresh Pomegranate Juice:

If you have fresh pomegranate juice, keep it refrigerated and use it within about 14 days from the time it was pressed. If you're buying fresh juice from the store in the refrigerated section, use it within 14 days from the time you open it. Store-bought juice has been sealed for freshness, so cracking the seal starts the clock. There should also be a "use by" date on the bottle too. If you think you won't use up your juice and you aren't ready for a martini, freezing it is the best storage option.

Freezing is the best way to preserve the flavor of shelf-stable juice too, once it's been open for two weeks. The properties that make pomegranate juice so good for you can degrade over time as well. That means you'll lose nutrition and flavor. Nobody wants that!

The Other Ingredients: It's a Pomegranate Cocktail with Vodka

Beyond the juice, the other ingredients you need to make a Fresh Pomegranate Martini are vodka, orange flavored liqueur and a slice of orange or tangerine.  Plain vodka is gluten-free, even if it's distilled from a grain that contains gluten. That's because the gluten protein doesn't make it through the distillation process. I usually choose Ciroc anyway. It's made from grapes and I feel better when I don't consume certain grains.

The recipe calls for orange liqueur, and Grand Marnier and Triple Sec are both gluten-free. You'll also need a slice of orange, tangerine or mandarin. I say "optional" in the recipe, but the fresh citrus makes a big difference, especially in the aroma of the drink. A twist or citrus zest will also work.

You can find more about gluten in alcohol here, a list of popular vodkas and what they're made from here, and my gluten-free alcohol list here.

Drinks with Pomegranate: Beyond the Pomtini

If you want to add a few pomegranate seeds (called arils) to your cocktail, here's how a pomegranate farmer gets seeds out of the fruit.

Cheers!

Photos: Meg van der Kruik – she makes a mean Classic Dirty Martini.

 This may be the best use of pomegranate juice, ever.

Frequently Asked Questions about this Pomegranate Martini Recipe: