This refreshing jicama salad is the perfect match for tequila and mezcal

If you love tasting agave spirits, stop chomping on lime wedges. If you’re drinking the good stuff, you’ll want something considerably less harsh. And nothing is as refreshing than the satisfying crunch and juicy burst of a jicama salad, which can cleanse between sips without bludgeoning your palate. I tasted versions of this salad all across Jalisco and Michoacán, but this rendition, layered with cucumbers, the softer citrus of orange and a sparkle of Tajín spice, was inspired by a tasting with master distiller Jorge Perez in Rio de Parras, Michoacan.

Serves 8-10

Ingredients

2 medium-sized jicamas, peeled and diced into ½-inch cubes

3 cucumbers, unpeeled, quartered lengthwise and cut into ½-inch segments

1 teaspoon kosher salt

3 oranges, divided, reserving ½ of one for garnish

4 limes, juiced

1 teaspoon agave syrup

2 tablespoons Tajín spice, for garnish

Directions

Once jicama and cucumbers are cut to size, toss with kosher salt and let them sit at room temperature for 15 minutes.

Combine the juice of 2½ oranges and limes with agave syrup, then toss with jicama and cucumbers and place in service bowl. Cut remaining unjuiced orange half into eight segments. Place Tajín spice in a remekin, dip one side of each orange into spice and then scatter atop the salad with spice-encrusted edges facing up. Pour a round of mezcal, drink and serve!