Food and Recipes Drinks Cocktails City Grocery Bloody Marys Be the first to rate & review! Chef John Currence's restaurant City Grocery in Oxford, Mississippi serves up these incredible Bloody Marys. By Chef John Currence Published on August 31, 2024 Recipe tested by Southern Living Test Kitchen Recipe tested by Southern Living Test Kitchen The Southern Living Test Kitchen has been publishing recipes since 1970, four years after the first issue of Southern Living Magazine appeared on newsstands. The Southern Living Test Kitchen team includes a team of professionals with deep expertise in recipe development, from pastry chefs and grilling experts to nutritionists and dietitians. Together, the team tests and retests, produces, styles, and photographs thousands of recipes each year in the state-of-the-art test kitchen facility located in Birmingham, Alabama. Learn more about the Southern Living Test Kitchen Rate PRINT Share Close Photo: Brian Woodcock; Styling: Lydia Pursell Active Time: 10 mins Total Time: 55 mins Servings: 6 This recipe comes from celebrated Mississippi chef John Currence via Alabama-based designer Billy Reid. "I use my good friend John Currence’s recipe from City Grocery [a restaurant in Oxford, Mississippi] for one of my favorite Bloody Marys,” says Billy. “I think it has 16 ingredients in it. That’s the way he wants it—complicated, complex, and spectacular at the same time. It’s a labor of love.” And we would add that it packs quite the punch, too. Ingredients 4 cups vegetable juice (such as V8) 1 3/4 cups (14 oz.) vodka (good quality but not top-shelf) 3 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce 2 Tbsp. dill pickle juice 5 tsp. prepared horseradish 2 1/2 tsp. finely grated shallot (from 1 large shallot) 2 1/2 tsp. black pepper, plus more for serving 2 tsp. hot sauce (such as Tabasco) 2 tsp. grated lemon zest plus 1/4 cup fresh juice (from 1 lemon) 1 1/2 tsp. minced garlic (from 3 garlic cloves) 1 1/2 tsp. kosher salt 1 tsp. grated lime zest plus 2 Tbsp. fresh juice (from 1 lime) 3/4 tsp. celery seeds Ice 6 pickled okra pods 12 cocktail onions 6 good-quality pitted green olives (such as Castelvetrano) 6 lime wedges Directions Place vegetable juice, vodka, Worcestershire, pickle juice, horseradish, shallot, pepper, hot sauce, lemon zest, lemon juice, garlic, salt, lime zest, lime juice, and celery seeds in a large pitcher; stir well to combine. Chill in refrigerator for at least 45 minutes or up to 24 hours. Fill 6 tumblers with ice. Thread 1 okra pod, 2 cocktail onions, and 1 olive on each of 6 skewers; add 1 skewer to each glass. Pour chilled mixture over ice in glasses. Sprinkle each drink with additional pepper, and place 1 lime wedge on each rim. Rate It Print