🥤 Peruvian golden soda (Inca Kola)
This bright yellow Peruvian soda is flavoured with lemon verbena (hierba luisa), giving it a sweet, fruity taste often compared to bubblegum or cream soda. It is very fizzy and very sweet. In Peru it is served ice-cold alongside everyday meals, famously with ceviche, chicken and chifa dishes.
Diets
Allergens
None of the 14 major allergens in a typical recipe.
What it is made of
Recipe
Ingredients
- 15 g fresh or 5 g dried lemon verbena
- 150 g sugar
- 150 ml water
- 1 litre cold carbonated water
- Ice to serve
Method
- Bring the water and sugar to a simmer until the sugar dissolves.
- Add the lemon verbena, take off the heat and steep for 15 minutes, then strain and cool.
- Pour 40–50 ml of syrup into each glass with ice.
- Top up with carbonated water and stir gently.
How to make it lighter
- A 330 ml glass of the sweetened soda is about 100 kcal; make it with half the syrup.
- Brew lemon verbena as an unsweetened iced tea for the same aroma without sugar.
- Drink it with a meal in a small glass rather than a large bottle.
History
The golden soda was created in Lima in the 1930s and became so popular that it is widely seen as Peru's national soft drink. This homemade version uses a lemon verbena syrup and sparkling water.
Count it in one photo
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Values are estimates per 100 g for a typical recipe; home and restaurant versions vary. Diets and allergens are worked out from the ingredients of a typical recipe — always check with whoever cooked the dish. Not medical advice. Nutrition data: Me Nutrition dish database v13. How we count →