Chilli and lime gin
So where are you at in your gin making life? Just starting out or looking to branch into flavour combinations? Whichever stage you are at, you need to try this chilli and lime gin.
For this we’re talking about some cracking flavours - both citrus and a bit of heat - all mixed in with the botanicals to give you a really flavoursome gin. It’s so good that you’re not going to want to stop sipping.
Almost a family recipe
This recipe is one that’s sort-of-but-not-really a family recipe. The first time I made it was not long after a trip to see my much-missed great uncle. He lived in Perthshire and he grew all manner of things in his greenhouse. In amongst the tomatoes and other leaves was the gold: the chilli plants.
I said they looked great and, as things tend to do, the conversation became about food instantly. There were a few that were ready to harvested to make his annual donation to the village church’s summer fair: some chilli gin. Chilli gin that would be the vegetable competition prize. You couldn’t make it up.
Aside from thinking that I was clearly missing something if that’s what church fairs offered (spoiler: they don’t), I knew I needed to make some myself.
Clearly the ‘gin genes’ run in the family, so getting home that evening I got brainstorming on this recipe. I added the lime for a bit for another level of flavour, and since then I’ve made it almost annually.
The colour of this chilli and lime gin is absolutely stunning. Especially in sunlight, the green comes through from the lime to make it look so refreshing. The flavour then ramps it up to 11 with both heat and zest.
It’s a summery looking drink, with a little devil on the inside. It’s perfect to cut through big flavours if you’re sitting back after a BBQ, and equally it’s quite at home in a glass throughout the autumn months to warm you up on a crisp day.
You can drink it over ice or with some tonic in a G and T.
Spice up; spice down
One of the best parts about this recipe is that you can make it really hot or pretty tame. The recipe below is a pretty good mid point on this scale. I wanted it to have a pretty good hit of spice to it, but also a) I am wimp and can’t handle too much spice; and b) too much spice would drown all the other flavours, making it a little pointless.
If you’re feeling like you’re going to need it way spicier, you can always add a second chilli in or taste at the mid-way point in the process and add some more. What I wouldn’t recommend is adding any sort of powder or flaked chillies - this isn’t going to be the same and will end up as a mushy mess.
Similar recipes to chilli and lime gin
PrintChilli and lime gin
- Prep Time: 10 minutes + 2 weeks
- Total Time: 10 minutes + 2 weeks
- Yield: 500ml 1x
Description
This is a deliciously warming gin. For the gin base I used Gordon’s – any half decent gin will do (not own brand: if it tastes like paint stripper beforehand, it will do so afterwards as well!) but don’t go too fancy as subtler notes will be overpowered by the flavours. I make mine in a 1 litre kilner jar I got online. The Usual Saucepans obviously supports responsible drinking (but has been known to err itself, on occasion).
Ingredients
- 2 red chillies
- 2 limes
- 50g caster sugar
- 500ml gin
Instructions
Get a large preserving jar (mine was a 1 litre one) and put the zest and juice of the limes into it. To this add the chillies, sugar and about a third of the gin. Swirl and shake until the sugar has dissolved and then add in the rest of the gin. Shake again.
Put in a cool, dark place and leave for about a fortnight (no one can be expected to wait much longer!) remembering to give it a good shake every day or two.
Once the gin has a strong green colour to it drain it – I use a sieve and lined with kitchen roll, but a cheesecloth does the same job – and pour the liquid into a pre-sterilised bottle.
Serve over ice, with a splash or two of tonic.
- Category: Drinks
Used in this recipe:
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Coffee filters work very well too for this and Limoncello.
Oh, that’s a good tip - thanks!
Hi! Clearly I’m incapable of reading your very clearly written recipe…I’ve just made this for my Dad for Father’s Day but added 1 litre of gin instead of 500ml…oops! Do you suggest I add more lime/sugar/chilli to balance it out?? HELP!!
Oh, I do things like that all the time, don’t worry. Yes, I would add more in. If you double up the chilli and lime and shake it quite a bit more than normal you should be able to speed it up a bit (or just delay the present by a week or so!)
Do you chop or prick the chillies at all, or just put them in whole?
I put them in whole - but if you need to shorten the resting time, I’d chop them to increase the surface area. Enjoy your gin making and do let me know how you get on!
I’ve just made some Chilli Gin. I wish I had done some research first, would have followed this recipe which sounds nice. Instead I just rammed 3 Jalepenos and 3 Cayenne peppers (all home-grown) into a bottle, topped up with Gordon’s Gin. No sugar, no lime; it’s gonna be brutal!
Wow… Yeah good luck with that. Lots of ice and tonic will probably be handy! You can definitely add sugar etc. after it’s made, you might just have to shake a little before pouring it.
I’m guessing you have since posting this, ‘refined’ this brew, but would you recommend any particular red Chillis?
I would recommend ring of fire chillies perfect for a kick. I get mine from Gloucestershire chilli farm - on FB 🙂
How well does the gin keep in the bottle? I’d like to make done for my wife for Christmas
It should keep for about 3-4 months, but to be perfectly honest it’s never lasted very long when I’ve made it! I would suggest making it late November, if it’s for Christmas.
I’ve made this but have a problem . Some floaty white stuff developed on the grated line that had sunk to the bottom of the jar. I’ve filtered it twice through coffee filters and it’s now clear, 2 days later it’s still clear. Is it safe to drink?
Oh dear. How strange! Never happened to me, but if you’ve filtered it and it’s still clear I would certainly try it - not proper medical advice though. Hope it’s delicious.
Thanks for the recipe. Made some for Christmas, a great success!
Awesome! Glad you enjoyed it. Great idea for a winter warmer at Christmas time.
Just bottled this. Wow, that’s hot! To be had with a good amount of tonic methinks. But tasty with it.
Is there any reason why this wouldn’t work with vodka?
Just to use up a rather large duty free bottle found lurking in the cupboard