Emulsifier Free Cucumber-Basil Watermelon Agua Fresca
Summer drinks can be a minefield when you're avoiding additives, since so many bottled beverages and powdered mixes sneak in emulsifiers to keep flavors blended and textures smooth. This agua fresca sidesteps all of that entirely — every ingredient here is a whole food you can see and name, from ripe watermelon and English cucumber to fresh basil, lime juice, honey, and a pinch of sea salt. The blender does the heavy lifting, and a quick pass through a fine-mesh strainer gives you a beautifully clear, silky drink without a single stabilizer or additive in sight. The flavor combination is genuinely stunning: sweet melon, cool cucumber, and fragrant basil hit all at once, with the lime and honey keeping everything bright and balanced. It's the kind of drink that looks fancy in a pitcher but comes together with almost no effort. Serve it over ice with a sprig of basil or a thin cucumber slice and it's instantly the most refreshing thing on the table.
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Learn more →Ingredients
4 servings
- 6 cups seedless watermelon, cut into 1-inch cubes (about ½ small watermelon)
- 1 medium english cucumber, peeled and roughly chopped
- ½ cup fresh basil leaves, loosely packed
- 3 tbsp fresh lime juice (from about 2 limes)
- 1–2 tbsp honey, or to taste
- ¼ tsp fine sea salt
- 1 cup cold water
For serving
- ice, for serving
- fresh basil sprigs or thin cucumber slices, for garnish (optional)
Instructions
- 1
Add the watermelon cubes, chopped cucumber, basil leaves, lime juice, honey, salt, and cold water to a blender. Blend on high until completely smooth, about 45–60 seconds.
- 2
Set a fine-mesh strainer over a large pitcher. Pour the blended mixture through the strainer in batches, pressing gently on the solids with a spoon to extract as much liquid as possible. Discard the solids.
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