Bizarre ‘dirty pasta water’ martini at top restaurant has cocktail lovers in a twist — an expert settles the debate

People love to shake things up when it comes to martinis.

Martini-core has been trending on social media for some time, and it doesn’t seem to be stopping. Though what kind of martini is the “it” martini? That’s always changing.

While the espresso martini has recently been named the top cocktail in New York City, boozers are always willing to try something more out there — whether that be adding parmesan to their espresso martinis or branching out to try a garlic bread martini.

Now comes the latest, very viral — and perhaps most insane — update to the time-tested tipple: the Dirty Pasta Water Martini.

For this, we can thank the the great minds behind the bar at Fiorella — a popular Italian restaurant in Philadelphia. The concoction is simple — just swap dry vermouth for used, or ‘dirty,’ pasta water.

The magic begins with boiling your pot of spaghetti, then cooling the leftover liquid.

Next, in a shaker filled with ice, combine gin or vodka, the reserved pasta water and olive brine — shaking vigorously for about 30 seconds until chilled.

Strain the drink twice — once through a larger strainer, then through a fine mesh strainer to remove any bits. Lastly, garnish the beverage with a skewer of olives.

Or, don’t make the drink at all, according to many commenters who found the beverage baffling.

“I prefer hot dog water,” someone joked — after Food & Wine posted the revolting recipe.

“Why are we just adding everything to a martini?? This is just getting disgusting,” another questioned.

“I just save some of my dish water. Mmmmmm. Dawntini,” one person quipped.

“Just because we can doesn’t mean we should,” a user commented.

But an expertat The Kitchn put the recipe to the test — concluding, shockingly, that it’s their “new favorite cocktail.”

In the review, they wrote that they weren’t expecting much, but after trying the restaurant’s recipe, they’ll now be saving their pasta water for future martini use — noting that the quirky addition adds salty notes to the savory drink.

“Despite my initial skepticism, I really enjoyed this,” they wrote.

“There have been plenty of times when I wanted a dirty martini but didn’t have vermouth on hand, and from now on I’ll definitely use pasta water as a replacement.”