How to Make a Mojito: Classic Cuban Recipe With Fresh Mint

A classic mojito is white rum, fresh lime juice, sugar, mint and soda water, built in a tall glass over ice. It's cold, bright and minty, and it's the most famous drink to come out of Havana.

This guide gives you the Cuban recipe and the one mistake most people make with mint.

Mojito Recipe

Ingredients (1 drink)

• 45 ml (1½ oz) white rum
• 20 ml (⅔ oz) fresh lime juice
• 2 tsp white cane sugar (or 15 ml simple syrup)
• 6 sprigs of fresh mint
• Soda water, to top
• Ice (crushed or cubed)

Method

1. Put the mint, sugar and lime juice in a tall glass.
2. Press the mint gently with a muddler, just 3 or 4 times.
3. Add a splash of soda water and fill the glass with ice.
4. Pour in the rum.
5. Top with soda water and stir lightly from the bottom up.
6. Garnish with a fresh mint sprig. Slap it between your palms first to wake up the smell.

The Mint Mistake

Most bad mojitos come from over-muddling. When you crush mint hard, you break its veins and release bitter, grassy flavors. You also end up with little dark bits stuck in your straw.

Press gently. You only want to bruise the leaves enough to release their oils. If you can still see whole leaves, you did it right.

Use spearmint if you can find it. It's sweeter and softer than peppermint, which can taste like toothpaste.

Which Rum Is Best?

Use a light, clean white rum. A Cuban-style rum is traditional, but any good dry white rum works. Avoid spiced rum. Its vanilla and baking spice flavors fight the mint.

Want more depth? Float 10 ml of aged rum on top at the end.

5 Tips for a Better Mojito

1. Dissolve the sugar first. Granulated sugar doesn't melt in cold drinks. Stir it with the lime before adding ice, or use syrup.
2. Use fresh lime only. Bottled juice makes the drink taste dull.
3. Crushed ice is best. It chills fast and keeps the mint suspended in the glass.
4. Don't drown it in soda. Top with about 60 to 90 ml. Too much soda makes it taste thin.
5. Taste and adjust. Limes vary a lot. Add a little more sugar or lime until it tastes balanced.

Mojito Variations

Strawberry mojito. Muddle 2 or 3 strawberries with the mint.

Passion fruit mojito. Add the pulp of half a passion fruit before shaking up the base.

Mojito pitcher. Multiply by 6. Mix rum, lime and syrup ahead in a jug. Add mint, ice and soda only right before serving, so it stays fizzy. Our party batching guide explains how.

Virgin mojito. Skip the rum and add a little more soda and lime. Still very refreshing.

A Short History

The mojito comes from Cuba. Its roots likely go back to an older drink of rough cane spirit, lime, sugar and mint. The modern version became famous in Havana bars in the 20th century, and today it's one of the most ordered cocktails in the world.

Mojito FAQ

Is a mojito strong? Not very. It has a single measure of rum and plenty of soda and ice, so it's lighter than most cocktails.

Can I make a mojito without a muddler? Yes. Use the back of a wooden spoon. Or just clap the mint between your hands and stir it in.

Should a mojito be shaken? The classic is built in the glass. Some bars shake the base (without soda) for a colder drink. Both work.

What's the difference between a mojito and a daiquiri? Same base (rum, lime, sugar). A daiquiri is shaken and served short, without mint or soda. A mojito is tall, minty and fizzy.

Keep Exploring

If you like mojitos, try the South Side, its gin cousin. Or read our list of the best rum cocktails.

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