Carrot Juice Clarification: 5 Tips For Making Crystal Clear Carrot-Infused Drinks
Out of the different root vegetables that are incorporated in mixology, one which stands out for its colour and sweet taste is the carrot. Firm, crunchy carrots are often blended into juice and finely strained before adding to drinks like a carrot infused bloody mary or a carrot and vodka smash. However, one of the more sophisticated ways of extracting carrot’s flavours for adding them to blends is in the form of clarified carrot juice.
A technique employed by mixologists to prepare a clear liquid whose flavours will be steadily infused into a blend for more uniformity, clarified juices are an upcoming trend which lead to the creation of silky smooth blends. Clarified carrot juice introduces into a cocktail or mocktail all the vegetable’s flavours even as the drink itself remains velvety without any added pulp or cloudiness in the mixture.
Preparing this clarified and crystal clear carrot juice for making cocktails can be a slightly tricky task. Here are some handy tips and hacks that can be utilised to make clear carrot juice:
Use Fresh Carrots
This one is a no-brainer. Bring fresh orangish reddish carrots from the greengrocers so maximum flavour can be extracted from their juice. Stale carrots tend to have a slightly earthy note whereas fresh produce is complete with a sweet, crunchy and acidic profile that is conducive to juicing. Fresh carrots also have brighter colours and these shades can be infused into the clarified blend which in turn brings forth subtle orange hues in the cocktails and mocktails concocted with the addition of carrot juice.
Add Gelatin For Clarification
Of the different steps and techniques involved in preparing clarified carrot juice, using gelatin is one of the more straightforward options. While this may seem a bit time consuming, the end result is a clear carrot juice which can lend an elegant finish to multiple cocktail recipes. Stir gelatin into fresh carrot juice and refrigerate for over six hours. Once the mixture sets, strain it using a cheesecloth to separate the richly flavoured carrot juice from the pulpy solids.
Milk Wash For Creamier Flavour
Another pro tip particularly useful for making carrot based cocktails with a creamier finish is milk washing carrot juice. This means mixing milk and carrot juice and curdling it using lime or vinegar. Milk solids can be strained away from this mixture to reveal a creamy, carrot flavoured, clear mix that can be added to a number of cocktails and mocktails. Milk wash clarification is particularly useful in giving carrot juice a smooth, velvety finish and in keeping its colour intact.
Turn Into Ice Cubes
An interesting way to make aesthetic use of this clarified carrot juice is to turn it into ice. Whether it is milk washed or prepared using gelatin, the clear liquid can be poured into ice cubes and frozen so they can be used as cooling agents in cocktails. Not only will this lend drinks a very artsy quality, but it will also release the flavours of the carrot more slowly into the blend, making for a novel tasting experience.
Add Lemon Juice For Acidity
Carrots are inherently sweet and contain slightly earthy flavour notes which come from the fibrous substances inside the vegetable. Add a touch of lemon juice to the clarified carrot juice once it is ready to infuse just a tad bit of acidity into the mixer. With this, the sweet taste of the clarified juice will become more pronounced such that the acidity builds more flavour into cocktails when mixed with spirits and other cocktail ingredients.
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