Mix It Up Monday: Spicy Dragon Fruit Old Fashioned

Recently, Alie and I picked up a dragon fruit on our recent Imperfect Foods order. I can’t say it was a fruit I’d ever tried before, although occasionally I’ve seen it in stores. I actually had to Google what it tasted like before making the decision to put it in our cart. After some deliberation, we decided that it would make a great simple syrup that we could use to create a cocktail. Dragon fruit simple syrup provides the sweetness in our Spicy Dragon Fruit Old Fashioned.

Dragon fruit is rumored to taste like a mix between pear and kiwi, both of which are flavors we enjoy. Despite its odd appearance, we decided to take a chance on the fruit to experiment with how it could be used in a cocktail. Because of the unique pink color, we decided to use the dragon fruit to create a vibrant, fushcia-colored syrup to add to a cocktail.

Dragon Fruit Simple Syrup

To create the simple syrup, we sliced the dragon fruit and left the skin on the fruit. The fruit was added to the pot with equal parts sugar and water and heated over medium heat until the sugar melted and the syrup was hot, but not boiling. We smashed the dragon fruit and let it sit in our syrup for three days. The key to creating this vibrantly colored syrup is to allow the dragon fruit to marinate for a minimum of 6 hours to extract the color pigment from the skin.

Spicy Dragon Fruit Old Fashioned

For this Spicy Dragon Fruit Old Fashioned, we paired our favorite whiskey, Evan Williams BiB, with the dragon fruit simple syrup, a dash of spicy bitters, and sage syrup. Due to the length of time we left the dragon fruit in our syrup, we noticed an earthy flavor. If you like your old fashioned a little sweeter, we recommend removing the pieces of dragon fruit from the syrup within 24 hours.

For this recipe, we used Bitter Queens Bangkok Betty Thai Spice Bitters. Be warned, these are HOT! If you don’t have Bitter Queens, any spicy bitters will work. If you aren’t a fan of spicy cocktails, you could leave the spicy bitters out entirely and use sage bitters in place of the sage syrup and spicy bitters.

If you don’t have premixed sage syrup, you can create a simple syrup. Just mix fresh sage leaves with equal parts water and sugar. You’ll want to heat the ingredients until the sugar is dissolved and the syrup is hot. Gently smash the sage leaves in the syrup and allow it to cool. Strain the syrup into a mason jar and store it in the refrigerator for 2-3 weeks.

Although there is a little labor involved in creating the dragon fruit simple syrup, it is worth it. This is a delicious old fashioned variation that we hope you enjoy as much as we did.

Happy Exploring!