mojito cocktail header with lime and mint on the side

When the sun comes out, everyone gets a little overexcited in the UK. Suddenly it’s all about “alfresco” dining, or sipping on something a little tropical to get you in the mood for warmer months.

So, in light of coaxing out the sunshine – and considering Jamie Oliver’s recent launch of Drinks Tube – it’s a perfect time to create a cocktail that embodies the essence of a tropical island.

I’m sharing with you here my new favourite tipple – a Lychee Mojito, inspired by my Mauritian heritage and love of lychees! This idea came from my recent visit to the Mauritian Rum Festival that was over in London for two days last week, showcasing some great rum producers from the island who are fusing their rum with tropical flavours such as pineapple, passionfruit, coconut, vanilla, mandarin and citronelle, to name a few. Having recently taken part in a cocktail class that involved making mojitos, I couldn’t think of a better way  to give mine an extra exotic twist than adding fresh lychees into the mix.

You could add litchi liqueur to your mojitos but this may be difficult to find – if you have it to hand in your drinks cabinet an extra splash of this accentuates the flavour of the lychees.  However, in this recipe I use canned lychees in syrup, which are easy to find in supermarkets and Asian stores.

All you need for this recipe is a working blender, a sieve, glasses, crushed ice or ice cubes and a few extra ingredients. Fancy colourful straws and umbrellas are optional but recommended.

tropical cocktails

Lychee mojito recipe

Makes 2 glasses

Ingredients:

  • 1 x  567g canned lychees in syrup
  • 75ml white rum
  • 1/4 wedge of lime, cut in half
  • 2 tsp light brown sugar
  • 6 fresh mint leaves
  • crushed ice

Method:

Tip your whole can of lychees, including syrup, into your blender and whizz. Once well blended, sieve the juice into a jug to get rid of extra lychee pieces. Add the rum to the lychee juice and mix well with a spoon.

Take a glass, squeeze in the first lime wedge, add it to the glass, then muddle with a 1 teaspoon of sugar and 3 crushed mint leaves. Repeat this process for a second glass. Add some crushed iced or an ice cube into each glass, then top them both up with the lychee rum juice and stir well. Sit back, relax and enjoy.


About the author

Selina Periampillai is a British-born Mauritian food pioneer, self-taught chef and food blogger. She runs the successful Yummy Choo Mauritian supperclub from her home in Croydon, plus regular pop ups around London, cookery classes and private catering for clients. With a passionate plan to revolutionise Mauritian cuisine, she loves feeding people! Having appeared in The Guardian, Good Food Guide, Food Network, Good Taste Magazine and more she can always be found in the kitchen cooking up a tropical feast. You can follow her on Twitter at @tastemauritius or check her out at www.tastemauritius.com.

Selina Periampillai

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Drinks