Vodka: Read my recommendations on vodka below. Simple syrup: I love making my own simple syrup and keeping a jar of it on hand in the refrigerator, but you can also buy it in the liquor section of your grocery store. The sweetness of the simple syrup is the perfect balance against the sourness of our next ingredient. Fresh lemon juice: It is important with only three ingredients in this recipe that you use fresh lemon juice and not bottled. Buy lemons that are firm but with a slight give to them. See my tips below on getting the most juice from your lemons.
Prep your glass. Rim the glass with a lemon wedge and dip the rim of the glass in granulated sugar. If you want to get fancy you could add a little lemon zest to the sugar before rimming. Fill a shaker with ice. I love using a metal shaker because it makes your drink ice cold. If you don’t have a cocktail shaker, you could use a mason jar with a lid. Add the remaining ingredients to the martini shaker. Shake well until all ingredients are well combined and ice cold. You’ll know this has happened when your shaker starts to feel cold. Strain into your prepared martini glass. Garnish. You can finish by adding a lemon curl! See more on this below.
If you need a more budget friendly option, Titos is great. Another fantastic budget friendly vodka is Kirkland Vodka that you buy from Costco. In blind taste tests, people often can’t taste the difference from Kirkland and Grey Goose.
Cut a slice of lemon and cut a small slice in it, removing the inside of the lemon leaving just a strip of peel. Curl the peel around a chopstick until it makes a nice curl. You can also twist it into a spiral if you don’t have a chopstick handy.
