triple sec
A clear, orange-flavored liqueur, sweeter and higher-proof than plain orange juice; used mainly in cocktails like margaritas, and occasionally in desserts, for concentrated sweet citrus flavor plus alcohol.
Buying guidance
A mid-range bottle is worth it over the cheapest option -- inexpensive triple sec is often thin and harshly alcoholic, while a step up (or true Cointreau) has a rounder orange flavor that comes through much more in a finished drink. It doesn't need to be top-shelf for cooking or mixing into a pitcher-style drink.
Substitutions
- Cointreau or Grand Marnier -- both richer, more polished orange liqueurs; Grand Marnier adds a brandy note triple sec doesn't have.
- Orange juice concentrate plus a splash of vodka or rum -- approximates the sweetness and alcohol without the specific orange-liqueur flavor.
- Orange juice plus a pinch of sugar -- nonalcoholic option; skips the alcohol's role in a cocktail entirely, best used elsewhere.
Tips & common mistakes
It's sweeter and more concentrated than the citrus juice it sometimes stands in for, so measuring it by eye instead of a proper measure easily oversweetens a drink or dessert and makes the alcohol taste more prominent than intended.
Storage
Because it's a sweetened liqueur rather than a plain spirit, an opened bottle left standing can develop a sticky ring of crystallized sugar around the cap and pour spout -- wipe the neck clean after pouring. It otherwise keeps for years at room temperature away from direct light.