Bloody Bull: The Bloody Mary's Beefy Cousin
While mimosas have become the drink of choice for those who love bottomless brunch, true hangover connoisseurs will never cease to pay homage to the queen of pre-noon alcoholic beverages: the Bloody Mary. She's built to cure all your ails, with a vitamin C and B6 boost from the tomato juice and a hot sauce and horseradish kick that will wake you up faster than that nitro cold brew ever will (per Serious Eats).
While many versions of the drink exist, the traditional components are vodka, tomato juice, Tabasco, Worcestershire sauce, celery salt, black pepper, and lemon juice, notes Liquor.com. Other popular twists are the Kimchi Bloody Mary, the Seafood Bloody Mary, and the Bloody Maria. Some cities, like Milwaukee, are even known to make a whole meal out of their Bloody Marys by garnishing it with fried chicken or a whole cheeseburger, shares Visit Milwaukee.
But there's one unexpected ingredient you could add to your Bloody Mary that will make it the cocktail's sublime cousin, the Bloody Bull: beef broth.
The Bloody Bull originated from a New Orleans brunch spot
The Bloody Mary dates back to the '20s, when Fernand Petiot, a bartender at Harry's New York Bar in Paris and later the St. Regis in New York, is claimed to have added a kick to some tomato juice and vodka, creating an instant classic, per Difford's Guide. But its beefy cousin came around at least a few decades later.
The Bloody Bull is said to be the child of the famous brunch restaurant Brennan's in New Orleans, states Southern Living. According to the restaurant's website, Brennan's was opened in 1946 by an Irishman, Owen Brennan, striving to make a culinary name for himself in the land of Creole and Cajun food. The place became a staple of NOLA's Vieux Carré, known for its elaborate breakfasts serving classics like Baked Apple, Turtle Soup, and Eggs Hussarde.
Owen Brennan is credited with a variety of interesting creations, including Bananas Foster and Caribbean Milk Punch, so it's really no surprise that the same place famous for making soup out of turtles and setting bananas on fire also decided to spike their breakfast cocktail with a little beef broth.
A Bloody Bull calls for the addition of beef broth
As Street Smart Kitchen explains, a Bloody Bull is a Bloody Mary made with beef broth, adding nutrients like protein and collagen, as well as a flavor boost. It's kind of like a combination of a Bloody Mary and a Bullshot (vodka, beef bouillon, Worcestershire sauce).
A Bloody Bull still contains almost all the same elements as a Bloody Mary: vodka, tomato juice, Worcestershire sauce, Tabasco, lemon juice, salt, and pepper. But the addition of beef broth means that the ratios should be adjusted. While Bloody Mary recipes vary dramatically, a 3:1 ratio of tomato juice to vodka is common (via Liquor Laboratory). However, a Bloody Bull recipe calls for a ratio of 1:1:1 for beef broth, vodka, and tomato juice, shares Liquor.com.
Beef bouillon can be used for a Bloody Bull, but homemade beef broth will always be the better option. Food & Wine states that the perfect Bloody Bull (which uses a unique homemade broth) is a creation made by bar manager Simon Gibson of Brooklyn Star in New York. "In my belief, a Bloody Bull should be thick and nutritious with a heavy vegetable base," Gibson says, noting that the secret ingredient he adds to the homemade beef broth used in the drink is none other than Ireland's favorite stout, Guinness, which gives the drink body and a note of umami.