Putting peanuts in Coke in apparently a thing. Surprised? I’m right there with you. I had never heard of this concept until I was browsing the internet late at night and stumbled across this phenomenon. When I first heard of putting peanuts in Coke I thought it was a little weird, but I asked around and apparently it’s a real tradition (and not lies I found on the internet). I was curious and I’m always willing to try new things, so I decided to test it out for myself to see what the hype is all about.
The History, The Myth, The Legend
Four score and seven years ago, Abraham Lincoln invented this intriguing drink combination. Just kidding. This tradition is pretty much a mystery in every way, except that it travels on word-of-mouth. Meaning technically he could have done this, but I’m betting against it.
No one really knows how or when people started putting peanuts in Coke, but at some point it just started happening. If you ask someone about it, they’ll likely say “it’s a Southern thing.” Or at least that’s what the internet, an old teacher from high school, and my cashier at Target told me.
Theories date back to the 1920s when Coca Cola was popular and farming was a huge economic factor in the south. Some (the internet) say that this tradition started because farmers had dirty hands and short breaks so they would pour the peanuts into Coke to eat and work at the same time without eating dirt.
The Taste Test
The true way to partake in this tradition is to get a glass Coca-Cola bottle, take a few sips, pour in the peanuts, and enjoy. Since it’s 2017 and I didn’t buy Coca-Cola’s limited edition glass bottles, I settled for plastic (sue me).
I opened up the bottle of my chilled Coke and added peanuts. The first thing I noticed was that the peanuts made the Coke fizz up more and there seemed to be permanent bubbles lingering around them. Then I took a swig of the drink… and choked on a peanut because that’s just who I am as a person. Once I stopped coughing and my family bothered to stop laughing at me, I could enjoy this savory sweetness.
There were salty and sweet flavors, but they were subtle. It’s very different from salted caramel ice cream or anything like that. It felt pretty cool to be part of a tradition and honestly it didn’t taste bad at all. For me, lazy as I am, this was a pretty convenient way to eat and drink and still have a free hand.
Right now this tradition doesn’t seem very popular except for with a few fanatics who believe peanuts in Coke is a good diet. Hint: it’s not.
But if you like peanuts and Coke then I’d definitely recommend you try it! Two things good separately are usually good together, right? In this case, it wouldn’t hurt to try. This could be your new snack for breaks between classes or your midnight munchies.