Cola I
Serves 6 Time 100 minutes Difficulty 3/5 Ingredients 14 Steps 8
Cola is a type of soda that consists of flavors derived from citrus fruits and spices. The word "cola" derives from kola nuts, a plant originating in West Africa. Older cola recipes often contained this nut as a source of caffeine, but most modern recipes do not contain kola nuts. This recipe has been modified from one by Flavorlab.
Ingredients
- ½ ea. lemon, peel removed
- ½ ea. orange, peel removed
- 14 dried makrut lime leaves
- 25 mg caffeine (optional)
- ½ tsp (2.5 ml) powdered cinnamon
- 1 tsp (5 ml) powdered nutmeg
- 1 tsp (5 ml) coriander seed
- 5 tbsp (75 ml) water
- 1 cup (240 ml) water
- 5 tsp (25 ml) strained fresh lime juice
- ½ tsp (2.5 ml) finely powdered citric acid
- ¼ cup (60 ml) white sugar
- 1 cup (240 ml) white sugar
- Carbonated water, as needed
Steps
- Chop lemon and orange peels into small pieces.
- Combine peels, lime leaves, caffeine, cinnamon, nutmeg, coriander and 5 tbsp (75 ml) water in mortar. Crush and grind with pestle until well blended.
- Transfer to saucepan. Simmer 10 min. Remove from heat.
- Strain. Combine with 1 cup water, lime juice and citric acid. Set aside.
- Melt ¼ cup (60 ml) sugar in heavy saucepan over medium heat, heating evenly without burning. Cook until caramelized.
- Stir citrus mixture into caramelized sugar until homogenized; watch for splatters.
- Stir in 1 cup (240 ml) sugar. Boil to viscous, honey-like syrup of about 1¼ cup (300 ml). Remove from heat. Cool.
- Combine 1 volume syrup with 5 volumes carbonated water.
Notes from the original
- Use water from a carbonating machine or a brand of pure carbonated water such as Polar Original Sparkling Water, Great Value Seltzer Water, or Signature Select Seltzer Water. Do not use a brand of mineral water such as Perrier, San Pellegrino, or Mineragua because the added minerals will ruin the taste. Avoid flavored sparkling water such as La Croix or Spindrift because the preexisting fruit flavors will ruin the drink.
- You can make cherry cola by adding five frozen cherries or 1 tsp (5 ml) of cherry extract during step 2.
- You can make vanilla cola by adding 1 tsp (5 ml) of vanilla extract during step 2.
Source. Adapted from “Cookbook:Cola I” by Wikibooks contributors, revision of 2026-05-19, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Changes. Steps rewritten into short commands. Introduction shortened. Wiki formatting removed. This adapted recipe is shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.