Irish Breakfast Shot

Top of the morning to you — have an Irish Breakfast Shot! These playful concoctions taste like a breakfast of syrupy pancakes, orange juice and crispy bacon. Shake them up for a unique weekend brunch drink or enjoy them for St. Patrick’s Day.

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Irish Breakfast Shot recipe

With St. Patrick’s Day around the corner, you’ve got to try the Irish Breakfast Shot at least once.

This playful shot recipe blends the rich flavors of Irish whiskey and butterscotch schnapps, making a shot that tastes like syrup-topped pancakes.

After you sip it, it’s complemented by a zesty chaser shot of orange juice and the whole thing is finished off with a bite of the savory garnish: crispy bacon.

If you take the shot and its chasers in the correct order (whiskey shot, orange juice, bacon), you’ll feel like you just finished a breakfast of maple syrup-smothered old-fashioned pancakes.

More shot recipes recipes: Baby Guinness Shot • Birthday Cake Shot • Chocolate Cake Shot • Orange Tea Shot • Gummy Bear Shot • Cinnamon Toast Crunch Shot

Why you’ll love this recipe

You are going to adore this simple and fun Irish breakfast shot recipe.

• This creative shot-chaser-garnish situation is fun to pull out at parties.
• With just four ingredients, it’s easy to shake up and serve.
• It’s perfect for St. Patrick’s Day, weekend get-togethers or even a boozy brunch.
• You can even make the mix ahead of time to prepare a bunch for a party.

What is an Irish Breakfast Shot?

The Irish breakfast shot is a shot you can order at a bar or make at home. It has three parts:

1. one shot made by combining Irish whiskey and butterscotch schnapps
2. a chaser shot of fresh orange juice
3. a garnish and chaser bite of crispy bacon.

It tastes more like an American pancake breakfast than it does anything Irish (looking at you, black pudding and soda bread). But because it contains Irish whiskey, that’s probably the reason the shot got its name.

Tools & glassware

For this recipe, you’ll need a basic bar set. It should include, at least:

• jigger, for measuring
• cocktail shaker, for shaking with ice
• strainer, for straining out the ice

You’ll also need to prepare some bacon, so you’ll need a frying pan for stovetop or a sheet pan if you want to bake your bacon in the oven. You can also make fast air fryer bacon.

To serve the shots, you will need shot glasses. I used 1.5-ounce shot glasses for the whiskey shots and 2-ounce shot glasses for the OJ, but you can use whatever you have.

Ingredients

Here’s what you’ll need to grab at the grocery store to make this recipe:

• Irish whiskey: This is the foundation of the shot. Jameson is the most popular, but you can certainly try other brands of Irish whiskey or even swap it for bourbon.
• butterscotch schnapps: Also called Buttershots, this sweet and buttery liqueur helps to create that pancake flavor in this drink. You can also use it in a butterbeer cocktail.
• orange juice: Use a pulp-free orange juice. For the best flavor, use the freshest OJ that you can, whether that’s juicing your own or buying fresh-pressed from the store.
• bacon: Fresh bacon makes for a fun garnish and adds the salty in this combo’s sweet-and-salty flavor explosion.

Garnishes

These shots are finished off with a slice of bacon. Cook it until it’s nice and crispy, and serve it as fresh as you can!

You could also garnish the OJ shots with little slices of fresh oranges or a piece of candied orange.

Variations and substitutions

No Irish whiskey? You can use bourbon or rye, but the shots won’t taste quite the same. They will still be good though!

No butterscotch schnapps? You can use maple syrup or maple liqueur.

No OJ? Serve them with an orange slice instead to use as your chaser, à la a shot of tequila with lime.

Omissions: You can skip the bacon and orange juice if you really want to. The shots will taste like maple syrup on their own. However, the tangy orange juice and salty bacon make for a well-rounded breakfast flavor.

How to make an Irish Breakfast Shot

Here’s how to make this easy Irish breakfast shot recipe:

1. In a cocktail shaker filled with ice, combine Irish whiskey and butterscotch schnapps. Shake well. (You can also pour them directly into the glass if you chill them ahead of time.)
2. Pour the whiskey and schnapps mixture into a small 1.5-ounce shot glass.
3. Pour the orange juice into a separate 2-ounce shot glass.
4. Garnish each whiskey shot with a piece of cooked bacon.
5. To enjoy, first drink the whiskey and schnapps shot, then chase it with the orange juice shot, and finish by taking a bite of the bacon garnish.

Tips & tricks

Here are some tips and tricks for making this recipe:

• When combining the whiskey and schnapps in the cocktail shaker, shake vigorously for 10-15 seconds. Shaking both combines the ingredients and makes them cold, enhancing the drinking experience. Don’t shake for longer than that, though, or the shots will be diluted.
• Make your own bacon for the freshest taste and flavor. I like to add a sprinkle of black pepper to the raw bacon before I cook them.
• Use fresh orange juice if you can! Since you’re taking them as shots, you may wish to avoid bits of pulp, so be sure to strain it out before enjoying it.

How to drink an Irish Breakfast Shot

Ready to knock them back? Let’s go! Here’s how to take one of these shots.

1. Start by arranging your shot glasses: one filled with the Irish whiskey and butterscotch schnapps mixture, and the other with orange juice.
2. Take hold of the bacon garnish, either with your fingers or a cocktail pick, and have it ready nearby.
3. First, pick up the shot glass containing the whiskey and schnapps mixture. Tilt your head back and quickly consume the entire shot. Immediately afterward, grab the shot glass of orange juice and swiftly drink it as a chaser.
4. After taking both shots, enjoy the savory piece of bacon garnish. Munch on it at your leisure, savoring the combination of flavors with the lingering tastes of the shot. You won’t believe how much this combo tastes like a pancake breakfast!

What to serve with an Irish Breakfast Shot

You can enjoy Irish breakfast shots on the weekend or for a special celebration.

Serving them with Irish breakfast foods? You need Irish soda bread French toast! You could also serve up a round of Irish pancakes or Guinness donuts.

Follow them up with some Irish brunch drinks like a zesty beermosa, festive green mimosas or a classic Irish coffee.

When to serve an Irish Breakfast Shots

These Irish breakfast shots are so much fun for all kinds of occasions:

• St. Patrick’s Day celebrations
• Brunches and breakfast parties
• Bachelor parties and bachelorette parties
• House parties
• Mardi Gras, especially Fat Tuesday AKA Shrove Tuesday
• Game day parties
• Tailgates

FAQ

More Irish drink recipes

• Irish Maid Cocktail
• Green Tea Shot
• Irish Coffee Jello Shots
• White Tea Shot
• Irish Old-Fashioned