Your Cocktail Is Missing One Key Ingredient: Edamame

Have you ever tried to replicate a drink from a fancy cocktail bar at home only to be disappointed? There are a lot of reasons why a drink doesn't come out quite right, even with the same ingredients, including ice shape and texture, the size of the glass, and different garnishes — including a flag garnish or a classy bit of lemon zest.

There's also a good chance that the spirits your bartender used were "washed" or infused to give it a little something extra — like using bacon fat to add a savory, smoky twist to whiskey cocktails. Rhon Romero, the head bartender at HALL and odo Lounge in New York City, told Food Republic how he uses a variety of different ingredients to add richness and flavor to savory cocktails, and it got us thinking that edamame might be a key ingredient that your cocktails are missing. "We infuse spirits with cooked edamame for a savory, nutty flavor," he said, adding that coconut milk is another option. "This works well in martinis or savory cocktails."

If you're not familiar with the process of fat washing, basically it's a process of infusing a spirit with something fatty like oil, bacon grease, milk, and yes, cooked soybeans aka edamame, which have around 8 grams of fat per cup. What happens is that some of the fat and flavor is dissolved into the ethanol, which gives the spirit more flavor and mouthfeel. Once the added ingredient has had time to steep in the spirit, the booze is separated from the fat, usually by freezing.

"We mix melted fat (e.g., sesame oil) with spirits, freeze, and skim off the fat," Rhon Romero told us. "This process adds richness to old fashioneds or smoky cocktails." When fat washing with an ingredient like milk, which won't separate with freezing, Romero adds an acidic ingredient to make the milk curdle so that he can clarify the cocktail. This is also the process for making a winter milk punch, which is another fun cocktail project.

After the fat is removed, the alcohol left behind has a silky texture, which Romero says is ideal for creamy or dessert-style drinks. Try edamame-washed vodka with a classic espresso martini, for instance — or take inspiration from HALL's expertly curated menu and use an edamame-washed bourbon paired with Campari and something citrusy for a bright finish.