Spicy Bloody Mary with Bacon

This is the BEST spicy bloody mary with bacon! Made from scratch, this easy recipe includes a chili salt rim and and twisted bacon garnish.

This post was originally published in March 2022, sponsored by Miller's Gourmet Foods and has been updated for content.

Bloody mary's are always a fun classic cocktail for Sunday brunch or on special occasions. I love a good bloody mary and this is definitely the best bloody mary mix, made with my favorite sweet and spicy banana pepper sauce.

Serve this ultimate bloody mary cocktail for your next brunch with a hash brown quiche, loaded blue cheese and bacon chips or fried goat cheese balls.

Jump to:

• 🌶 Ingredient notes
• 📋 Substitutions and variations
• 🍹Step by step instructions
• ⭐ Expert tips
• ⏲️ Make ahead instructions
• 🥡 Storage suggestions
• 🍸 More cocktail recipes
• #ScarlatiFamilyKitchen
• 📖 Recipe
• 💬 Comments

🌶 Ingredient notes

• Banana Pepper Sauce - This fresh banana pepper hot sauce is definitely one of my favorite condiments that has the perfect spicy kick. It gives this drink just the right amount of heat along with the natural flavor of banana pepper. You can find it sometimes at the grocery store or it can purchased it online. You can substitute it with your favorite hot sauce, but I would cut the amount in half.
• Bacon - These twisted bacon straws are a really fun way to garnish the drinks and honestly the best part. Use your favorite variety of bacon to make these bacon twists. Make sure to get regular sliced as opposed to thick sliced, as they are harder to twist.
• Garnishes - In addition to the twisted bacon, green olives, banana peppers, cocktail shrimp and a celery stick are my favorite garnishes. These are optional and can be customized to your liking. A pickle spear, sliced jalapeño, fresh lime wedge, cocktail onion or marinated artichokes are also great options.

📋 Substitutions and variations

• Extra Spice - Add a few dashes of black pepper or cayenne pepper or even more heat!
• Vegetarian - Omit the twisted bacon and shrimp garnishes and use vegan worcestershire sauce instead.
• Non-Alcoholic - Substitute the vodka for extra tomato juice to make this a "virgin mary" mocktail.
• Big Batch - Want to serve this drink for a party? Size up the quantities to serve the amount of people you need and serve the mix in a beverage carafes. Serve ice and garnishes on the side for a make your own bloody mary bar.
• Single Serving - To make just a single cocktail, cut the quantities of the recipe by a quarter. Instead of making the drink in a glass or pitcher, shake the ingredients with ice in a cocktail shaker and then serve over ice with the garnishes.

🍹Step by step instructions

First, twist the bacon strips tightly and then place them on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper or foil.

Roast the bacon in a 400˚ oven for 20-25 minutes until crispy. Allow the bacon to drain and cool completely on paper towels.

Next, in a shallow dish or on a small plate, mix together the chili powder and kosher salt.

Run a lime wedge around the rim of the glass and then dip the moistened rim in the chili salt mixture.

In a beverage carafe or large pitcher, combine the plain tomato juice, vodka, banana pepper sauce, olive juice, lime juice, worcestershire sauce, liquid smoke and celery salt.

Mix together gently and then fill the pilsner glass or large mason jar about ¾ of the way with ice. Pour bloody mary mix over the top, leaving an inch or two of space of the garnishes.

Finally, garnish each spicy bloody mary cocktail with the twisted bacon, celery stalks, cocktail shrimp and a green olive and banana pepper skewer.

⭐ Expert tips

• Make sure to twist the bacon tightly so that it stays twisted during roasting. They may start to twist or move a bit during cooking and can be straightened out with tongs during cooking if needed.
• Let the bacon drain on a paper towel and cool completely so that it crisps up enough to stand in the drink.
• Use beverage toothpicks to skewer together smaller ingredients, like the olives or peppers, or just let them float in the drink by themselves.
• If making the homemade mix ahead of time, do not add ice or it will water down the drinks.

⏲️ Make ahead instructions

The spicy bloody mary mix can be made up to 24 hours ahead of time with the vodka in it or up to 3 days ahead of time without it. Store the mix in the airtight container in the refrigerator until use. At serving time, stir in the vodka (if needed), pour over ice and add garnishes.

🥡 Storage suggestions

Leftover mix that does not contain vodka can be frozen in ice cubes to be stored for later. Leftover bloody mary mix with the vodka will keep in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 2-3 days.

🍸 More cocktail recipes

If you loved this spicy bloody mary recipe, check out these other cocktail recipes that I know you will love too!

• Rossini Cocktail
• Bourbon Apple Cider Cocktail
• Pink Vodka Lemonade
• Sgroppino

📖 Recipe