This festive season, add some desi flavour to your mocktails

Bored of serving those fizzy bottled drinks to your guests during the festive season? How about delicious mocktails that come packed with the goodness of natural ingredients such as heeng and imli? Here are a few mocktail recipes that are fun and flavourful and will also pair well with your festive spread. Welcome your guests with a chilled glass of refreshing mocktails this Diwali .

1) Chatpati imli shots

Ingredients: 1 litre of tomato juice, 1/2 cup Tamarind puree, 4 tsp worcestershire sauce, 1 tsp tabasco, 1 tsp lemon Juice , salt ,freshly ground black pepper.

Method: Mix the tamarind, Worcestershire sauce, salt, black pepper and tabasco in tomato juice. Add a lot of ice. Pour in shot glasses and garnish with a celery stick and slice of lemon.

By mixologist Vaibhav Singh from Unplugged Courtyard.

2) Pineapple and chili tini

Ingredients: 200 gm pineapple puree , 10 gm chili , 30 gm lemon, 20 gm mint, 100 gm crushed ice, 100 ml sweet lime juice, 20 gm amla puree and 100 ml carbonated water /soda/ aerated water.

Method: Take a fresh pineapple and shave off the skin. Blend it with chili, lemon juice, mint , amla puree and sweet lime juice. Strain and add crushed ice. Add carbonated water. Garnish with mint and sweet lime slices. Your drink is ready to be served.

By chef Nishant Kumar Choubey, The Roseate

3) A’nesthesia

Ingredients: 4-5 rambuttan, 1 star anise seed, 120 ml lychee juice, 10 ml lemon juice, 10 ml grenadine syrup – 20 ml pomegranate concentrate.

Method: Muddle rambuttan and star anise in shaker. Add lychee juice, pomegranate concentrate and lemon juice in a shaker. Shake the shaker vigorously filled with ice. Serve it in a chilled martini glass. Add grenadine syrup in a martini glass. Garnish with star anise.This goes really well with spicy food!

By chef Nishant Kumar Choubey

4) Scintillating blue currant

Ingredients: 50 ml blue currant juice, 10 ml lemonade- 10 ml lemon juice, 30ml white grape juice, 20 ml blue soda, crushed ice, cherry for garnish.

Method: Puree blackcurrant and strain it. Add lemon juice and white grape juice in a cocktail shaker with ice and shake until chilled.Double strain into a chilled martini glass and top up with soda. Garnish with cherry and lime wedge. Perfect drink for a relaxed afternoon. Goes really well with a gourmet cheese platter and sweet tarts. Apple juice can be used instead of white grape juice.

By chef Nishant Kumar Choubey

5) One for the Road

Ingredients: Fresh Orange – Half (diced – with the peel but no seeds), 150 ml orange juice, 15 ml peach syrup, 5 ml blue curacao syrup, 5 ml lime juice.

Method: Take a long glass, add the fresh dices of orange then slightly muddle or press them with a spoon just to release their flavours and aroma oils, then add the blue curacao followed by all the other ingredients.After that, fill the glass with ice, take a spoon and stir the ingredients, mix it well and the summer drink is ready. Taste it to adjust the sugar and garnish it with cherry and orange slices.

By mixologist Anthony Philip, Cafe Dalal Street

6) Jalapeno popper

Ingredients: 1-2 slice jalapeno pepper, soda as per required, 1/2 ounce sugar syrup, juice from 1 fresh lemon, a pinch salt, chile pepper, (optional) 1 lime wedge.

Method: Rub the rim of a mocktail glass with the edge of a cut lime. Sprinkle salt (and chilli powder if using) on a plate and run the rim of the glass over it to coat. Fill glass with crushed ice.Muddle (smash using a muddler or a wooden spoon) the slices of jalapeno at the bottom of a shaker.Fill half-way with crushed ice, then add simple syrup and lime juice and shake vigorously.Strain the mixture into the prepared glass. Add the soda. Garnish with a lime wedge and a slice of jalapeno and serve immediately.

By chef Akshay Nayyar, Drama Upside Down