Cooking with Coca-Cola and other sodas

[Pookie]

I have made the Ham in Co-cola from Nigella too. We all loved it. I also do ribs and such in a cola marinade.

I did see once where someone made a coke reduction and served it over ice cream. And Boiled coke is supposed to be good for sore throats.

[Holly Moore]

Jack McDavid of Food Channel's Grillin' and Chillin' and of Jack's Firehouse and the Down Home Diner in Philadelphia did bear steak with Coca Cola Sauce for the James Beard House a few years ago.

The recipe originated when Jack was cooking at Le Bec-Fin. One of the Sous Chefs kidded him, "All you Americans know is ketchup and Coca-Cola." Jack picked up the gauntlet and delivered a highly respectable Coca-Cola sauce.

[MarketStEl]

I've done ham in Coca-Cola glaze (really good), in Holiday Spice Pepsi glaze (liked the stuff more as a soda than as a ham glaze) and in pineapple soda glaze (works a little bit better than pineapple juice; must be the carbonation and extra sugar).

Haven't tried Coke as a barbecue sauce ingredient yet. Sounds like a good idea, though.

Neat story about Jack McDavid, Holly.

[AmyKay]

The other day my boyfriend took me to a cooking class/dinner event for my birthday. The chef prepared a shrimp appetizer which included reduced cola in the sauce. It was really, really good. It added complexity to the flavor that I didn't really anticipate.

To be honest, I thought the flavor was kind of suggestive of mole. It would not be mistaken for mole, but it was just sort of reminded me of it. pm me if you want the recipe.

[Megan Blocker]

When I was growing up, my dad used to make something called Caca Chicken (so-called, I think, because it didn't look terribly appetizing), and it had Coke in the sauce. I remember really enjoying it - but, then, I was about 7, so I couldn't vouch for it now. I suppose I should try to get his recipe!

[achevres]

OK, I'll add my vote for cooking with Coca-Cola, at least with pork.

I have made Nigella's Ham with Coca-Cola (twice) and we loved it. One caveat, The hams I get need less cooking time.

I have also made the ribs with cherry cola sauce (also twice) from the Bon Appetit BBQ issue a few years ago and they were also a big hit.

[deltadoc]

I am aghast. OF all places to read about Coca-Cola recipes. Is there anyone here who actually thinks that the "Classic Coke" of today's world has any "real" relationship to the Coca Cola before the "New Coke" introduction? Do you not realize that "New Coke" was just a ploy to rid the world of any remaining "original Coca-Cola", so that they could introduce the "new" "Original Formula" Classic Coke which no longer depends on coca leaves and probably cola nuts too for its flavor base?

I could make a list of many foods that drinking the Classic Coke of today leaves a whole different "after-taste" than the days of "pre-New Coke".

Don't get me started on "Original Formula" either.

Prior to 1908, it still had codeine in it. Prior to 1902 it still had cocaine in it too.

And the whole reason it was called "Coca Cola" is that the flavor base relied heavily on coca leaf extract and cola nut extractives.

The US Government used to buy coca leaves from South America, perform an organic extraction, reduced that to the base molecule "ecognine", then re-synthesized that back up to pharmaceutical grade cocaine hydrochloride and/or cocaine sulfate.

doc

Edited August 24, 2005 by deltadoc (log)

[Megan Blocker]

I am aghast.  OF all places to read about Coca-Cola recipes.  Is there anyone here who actually thinks that the "Classic Coke" of today's world has any "real" relationship to the Coca Cola before the "New Coke" introduction?  Do you not realize that "New Coke" was just a ploy to rid the world of any remaining "original Coca-Cola", so that they could introduce the "new"  "Original Formula" Classic Coke which no longer depends on coca leaves and probably cola nuts too for its flavor base?

I could make a list of many foods that drinking the Classic Coke of today leaves a whole different "after-taste" than the days of "pre-New Coke".

Don't get me started on "Original Formula" either.

Prior to 1908, it still had codeine in it.  Prior to 1902 it still had cocaine in it too.

And the whole reason it was called "Coca Cola" is that the flavor base relied heavily on coca leaf extract and cola nut extractives.

The US Government used to buy coca leaves from South America, perform an organic extraction, reduced that to the base molecule "ecognine", then re-synthesized that back up to pharmaceutical grade cocaine hydrochloride and/or cocaine sulfate.  Actually, cocaine Hydrochloride is almost but impossible to obtain in the US, so it has to be special ordered from Europe.  The vice-versa, I believe, is also true, in that in Europe you cannot hardly obtain cocaine sulphate, but only cocaine hydrochloride.

doc

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Your point being that we shouldn't cook with it, since it's not the original formula?

[Sartain]

My aunt used to make Chinese red-cooked chicken with a braising liquid of soy, coke (flat), ginger and scallions and the usual Chinese cooking suspects. It was the family hit.

She also used to boil coke with lemons and give it to us kids hot as a sore throat curative. That gave way to tea with lemon and honey as we grew older, but I still remember that concoction fondly.

[EdS]

...

Don't get me started on "Original Formula" either.

Prior to 1908, it still had codeine in it.  Prior to 1902 it still had cocaine in it too.

And the whole reason it was called "Coca Cola" is that the flavor base relied heavily on coca leaf extract and cola nut extractives.

The US Government used to buy coca leaves from South America, perform an organic extraction, reduced that to the base molecule "ecognine", then re-synthesized that back up to pharmaceutical grade cocaine hydrochloride and/or cocaine sulfate.

doc

←

Here's a lovely mug of coca tea that I had a year ago in Peru. Yes, that mug is full of coca leaves. All you do is add some hot water and a little sugar. You can find coca tea served at many bars and cafes. It became part of my routine on my trip. Coca tea bags are available at the supermarket. It's all perfectly legal. Indeed, I liked the flavor better than coffee or tea. Even forgetting about the stimulant effect, I can see why someone would want to use the flavor in a soft drink. Drinking a mug that size gave me a buzz about the same as a strong cup of coffee. The unusual thing was that it also made my lips a bit numb. That's no surprise given that coca leaves are used to make codeine and cocaine. My understanding is that it takes a whole lot of coca leaves to make a useful amount of cocaine. I've been told that Coca-Cola still uses coca leaf extract but that the active ingredient is removed.

By the way, you can get Mexican-market Coca-Cola made with sugar rather than high-fructose corn syrup at Latin grocery stores and some restaurants. I don't know if the formula is the same as that before New Coke but I like it better than the U.S. version. If I were going to cook something with Coke, I'd probably use the import version.

If I wanted to simulate the effect of cooking with the 1902 version, maybe I'd throw some No-Doze into the pot along with some Sichuan pepper.

[EdS]

Classic Cooking with Coca-Cola on Amazon

If you click the Look inside this book link, you can view the entire table of contents. There are quite a few ideas, perhap the makings of an entire cuisine there.

[deltadoc]

My point isn't "So we shouldn't cook with the modern day Coca Cola?"! Just that most of those recipes relied on the "Real Thing" and I usually like to try out original recipes using the real ingredients upon which they were based, before I start modifying them. You can substitute Nutra-sweet for real sugar if you want, it doesn't matter to me as long as you like it.

In my original post, I forgot to add that after the government got done doing their extraction process on the coca leaves, they gave/sold the leaves to the coca cola company to use for flavoring.

BTW: Addressing that other post, codeine does not come from coca leaves. Codeine is a by-product of opium extraction. An Atlanta pharmacist once told me that the codeine was in the original Coca Cola to smooth out the buzz from the cocaine, which makes sense to me. It was orinally sold as an elixir in the form of a syrup. Somewhere along the way, someone discovered how good the syrup was mixed with seltzer water!

I would be very surprised if the modern day Coca Cola still relied on coca leaf extractives for flavor. The whole point was that it was becoming too expensive to use anymore, and the company didn't want any of the real stuff around to compare to the "new" original formula.

But oh for a glass of the original Vin Mariani!

I'm told there is a whole book consisting of letters of praise from kings and heads of state regarding their admiration for Vin Mariani. (I hope I am spelling that right!)

doc

Edited August 25, 2005 by deltadoc (log)

[Carolyn Lavergne]

No, I've never tried cooking with Coca Cola before. And to be quite honest, I wouldn't want to. But I don't even drink the stuff, either, so I guess I'm no judge. Ugh.

Mind you, I used to feel the same about cooking with beer, until I tried a few good recipes, so I could be wrong.

[Jaymes]

I have a friend that always serves caramelized onions when she's entertaining casually - hot dogs, hamburgers, etc. She makes those onions by slicing up a few and putting them into a skillet with Coke or 7-Up, and cooking them down.

I ate those onions for years without her telling me how she made them. I'll admit I was stunned when she finally told me what she used.

[OliverB]

As far as I know (and wikipedia - coca leaf in coca cola) they still use the leaf extract in coke. But the main flavoring I can detect is lots of sugar, vanilla and cinnamon. Makes sense that these things work well with ham. I've never used coke in cooking, but I think I'll try it with some pork this spring. Or maybe simmer some brats in it? Doing the beer boil with brats doesn't seem to do anything much, I consider it a waste of a good beer, but coke could add a nice sweet layer, and the sugar should help with a really nice browning. I rarely drink it, but do have some bottles in the pantry somewhere. Might as well use them.

To my surprise you can find coca leaf tea online even on Amazon.

[Jaymes]

My "go to" recipe for carrots is to slice them, and then simmer in ginger ale. Quick, easy, delicious.

[Gregg]

We've used variations of ham glaze with coke and usually thought they were just fine. Have a friend who makes coke cake. I'm not a real cake eater, but it is very moist and seems to please everyone who needs a sugar fix more than I do. I do a brisket recipe a few times a year with Dr. Pepper that seems to always draw rave reviews and have also done a pork tenderloin marinated in Jarritos' Pina soda that turned out very well.

[pedro]

Pierre Hermé served Coca-Cola chicken at his restaurant Korova in Paris. A short-lived restaurant.

[toolprincess]

I have a recipe somewhere for apple dumplings with Mountain dew as the sauce. It cooks down and is actually quite tasty. My coworkers scoffed when I told them about it but when I actually made some and brought them in -they all got eaten right up!

edited to add: i got the recipe from thepioneerwoman website but a google search turned up several versions.

Edited March 30, 2011 by toolprincess (log)

[Jaymes]

You know, on the one hand, although I do use soda pop in cooking from time to time (as per the carrots in ginger ale mentioned above), I always have found something extremely unappealing about the thought of it. For me, it's not the taste - the taste is great - caramel, citrus, ginger, fruits, etc. - it's more about all those chemical additives and artificial flavors. I hate thinking about unnecessarily putting those into, for example, my ham. I think there's something unhealthy and distasteful about it. That's a big reason (along with all that sugar) that I never drink colas myself, and didn't even allow them in the house when I was raising my three kids.

But when I think about the millions and millions of folks that willingly, even happily, suck this stuff down every single day, paying pretty dearly for it when you consider the cost per year, there's got to be nothing wrong with occasionally cooking up a couple of pork chops in it.

Still, it's a kinda hard thing for me to wrap my head around.

_______________

Edited March 30, 2011 by Jaymes (log)

[heidih]

I experience the same discomfort as Jaymes, and yet found the concept of pork butt cooked with Dr. Pepper oddly appealing when I saw it on The Pioneer Woman's blog recently. Similar recipes are all over the net.

I seem to recall 7up being a component in marinating Korean short ribs. Anyone know?

[Toliver]

I seem to recall 7up being a component in marinating Korean short ribs. Anyone know?

I don't have an answer but my brother's M-I-L is Filipino and uses 7Up as one of the ingredients in her "secret" marinade for shish kebab meat for family parties. It tastes great.