Avocado Soda Possible?

You may be thinking "What the hell?". But avocado actually makes a really good dessert, whether it's avocado ice cream or avocado mousse. I thought it would be awesome to make an avocado soda, maybe even like an avocado cream soda.

If you're still with me....

I'm assuming there's not going to be an avocado extract readily on the market to make soda with. Sooo... Does anyone know how exactly I could extract the avocado flavor? If I have to do it naturally, even better.

Your thoughts please.

Huh. This is an interesting idea. I have no idea how to go about extracting the avocado flavor. I think the problem you might run into is the fat content in avocado would do badly in a soda, and I suspect that the flavor compounds are fat soluble and not alcohol or water soluble.

Your best bet might be to whirl some avocado in a blender with some water and just run with that rather than an extraction, but I don't know if that would work.

You need a food chemist, I think!

EDIT: I talked to a friend of mine who's gone through culinary training and he thinks the only chance you've got short of finding something online is a steam extraction. Pretty much you put a bowl inside a pot with room between the edges of the bowl and the sides of the pot, boil cut up avocado in some water and put a lid on the pot inverted, then some ice on top of the lid. The steam rises up, condenses, and drips down into the bowl. He doesn't know if it'll work, but it's something to attempt if you've got an avocado lying around.

Thanks for the info. So essentially it's like making the avocado sweat it's flavor out? I'll give that a try. I've seen avocado flavored drinking water, so there must be some kind of way. Maybe I'll check some food chemistry books out of the library. I've been trying to take the scientific approach to brewing anyways, so this'll be interesting.

Update: I searched for avocado flavor extract on Google and there's some flavor development company that makes it but there's no link where to purchase it or anything. I shall continue the search.

I remember reading this thread a while back where a dude did a pumpkin-based soda by boiling the pumpkin. https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f95/fall-soda-recipe-80641/

So I'd assume the steam method would work even better because it'd be closer to pure flavor instead of a mix of flavor and water. I'm gonna try both ways (the steam extraction and straight boil) and see what I can come up with. Luckily avocados are on sale this week at the grocery store.

huh??? you mean like guecamole (sp?) soda pop... well in mexico they make chili soda... so i guess... sorry but i think this is a bit weird... but if it floats your boat

Cheers

BrewinJack said:

huh??? you mean like guecamole (sp?) soda pop... well in mexico they make chili soda... so i guess... sorry but i think this is a bit weird... but if it floats your boat

Cheers

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Not so much guacamole-flavored. Normally guacamole is avocado mixed with spices so it has a different texture and flavor than pure avocado. Contrary to popular belief, avocado is actually a fruit. So when you whip avocado with a little bit of sweetness, it's actually very dessert-like. Avocado ice cream and mousse is actually a very common dessert in a lot of high-end restaurants. So I was thinking once I figure a way to extract the flavor, trying it with a bit of a cream mix. The way I see it, if Jones Soda Co. can make Turkey And Gravy pop, a man can at least make an obscure fruit-flavored pop.

I'm really interested to hear how this turns out. Keep us posted if you dont mind.

I would be interested as well. The only issue I would expect is the avocado flesh turning dark (oxidation?). Maybe a little citric acid in your soda would help this. It would be accelerated by the heating process in my mind.

Thoughts:

1. blend the flesh in water, 1:2 flesh to water ratio. Then strain it out with a colander or cheese cloth.
2. What sweetner works best with avocado in your experience? Honey comes to mind but so would agave nectar.
3. Does avocado have anything it that would reduce fermentation of yeast for carbing?

Now I am seriously curious. I am thinking this would be great with a touch of chipotle flavor.

Keep us posted.

I've seen avocado juice listed on drink menus in Thailand and Indonesia. I never tried it, but when they say "juice", they mean juice, water and sugar. So an orange juice would be oj, water and sugar blended up. Avocado juice must have just been avocado, water and sugar, too.

I'd be tempted to just puree avocado with sugar and a bit of lemon juice (to prevent oxidation) and toss it in the fridge - and then mix with soda water when you're ready to weird out your foodie friends.

All soda should have some acid anyway in my experience, either lemon juice or an acid blend. You might want to add it at the beginning of dealing with the avocado instead of at the end when everything is together.

I was planning on adding lemon juice, obviously for the acidity but also because avocado browns very quickly. I wanna try a couple variations, one being straight avocado flavor and one being almost like an avocado-cream soda. I'm gonna order some champagne yeast soon to begin my grand experiment.

I'm gonna try a few different flavor extraction ideas and see what works best. I'm gonna try the original steam extraction idea TBL's friend suggested as well as the idea of boiling into water then straining.

Hours at work have been getting slim so I've had a lot of free time lately so I will have a lot of time to experiment. I will gladly report my findings. Thanks for all the suggestions guys!

If you don't want to wait for the champagne yeast, you can use bread yeast. I use it in all my soda making, purely for convenience.

It will not give as good results as champagne yeast will - bread yeast leaves behind a distinctly sourdough aroma, but it has minimal flavor impact.

The Blow Leprechaun said:

If you don't want to wait for the champagne yeast, you can use bread yeast. I use it in all my soda making, purely for convenience.

It will not give as good results as champagne yeast will - bread yeast leaves behind a distinctly sourdough aroma, but it has minimal flavor impact.

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I found out there's a homebrewing shop right by my house now! :rockin: I'm gonna stop and get some champagne yeast. But thanks for the tip about the bread yeast.

I would use champagne yeast for soda if I could get it without having to drive 40 minutes each way, so absolutely, you lucky bastard!

I'm about to head out to the homebrew shop to pick up some yeast and then to the grocery store to get some avocados. I'll see what I can accomplish.

MFDave said:

I'm about to head out to the homebrew shop to pick up some yeast and then to the grocery store to get some avocados. I'll see what I can accomplish.

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dude! that is both awesome AND disgusting. but then again "art is not safe" im interested to see how this turns out. depending on pH and buffering it might have to be treated like a mead but who knows. this would be an awesome ice cream idea also.

wilbanba said:

dude! that is both awesome AND disgusting. but then again "art is not safe" im interested to see how this turns out. depending on pH and buffering it might have to be treated like a mead but who knows. this would be an awesome ice cream idea also.

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Avocado ice cream is actually pretty common.

Yeah, I don't think this idea is nearly as "out there" as it seems at first... I'm not overly fond of avocado myself, but it makes culinary sense to me.

The Blow Leprechaun said:

Yeah, I don't think this idea is nearly as "out there" as it seems at first... I'm not overly fond of avocado myself, but it makes culinary sense to me.

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Yeah like right away, my friends were like "Eww" but when I explain it, it makes more sense to them. I didn't get a chance to go the other day to get some yeast or avocados, I got sidetracked. But I just saw the ad for a local grocery store and they have avocados on sale this week, so I'm gonna head over there this week and get cracking on the extraction process.

My friends and I came up with some other cool and odd soda ideas last night as we got hammered, so we'll have a lot of experiments coming up!

results?
how did it come out?

wilbanba said:

results?
how did it come out?

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I plan on making the trip out to the grocery store to get a bag of avocados tomorrow. I will let you know of my results gentlemen.

I'm the one that posted above about avocado juice in thailand.

Well I just got back from vacation in Hawaii - and we stayed on a farm in Kauai that had a bunch of fruit trees, including avocado and lime. One night, while playing mad scientist with the blender (the pineapple-lime-ginger-pog daiquiri was the big hit of the night), I decided to make an avocado juice. I mixed the contents of one humongous avocado (the size of a giant navel orange), one lime, sugar, 12 oz of water and a handful of ice, and blended away. It was pale green and the consistency of a yogurt smoothie . . and the best way I can describe it is that it tasted like drinking slightly sweet mayonnaise! Ugh. I took a few swigs and the rest went down the drain. The avocado consistency and fattiness overwhelms any avocado flavor. Maybe I should have just made limeade and added a slice or two of avocado?

from my knowledge, generally an extract is when you soak something in alcohol to pull out the soluble flavors lemon/vanilla/chilli/peppercorn etc

i have no idea if avocados have any

but i really want to see where this goes... even if utterly disgusting

Did you try to make Avocado Juice and use that?

Indonesian Food Recipes - Avocado Juice - Jus Apokat

Avocado (also known as Apokat in Indonesia) is one of popular fruits in Indonesia. You can find it easily in traditional market or supermarket with very cheap price. It's very good either you make it for a juice or just eat it as a salad. Avocado fruits have a smooth, creamy, greenish-yellow flesh with an unusually high amount of fat that is primarily monounsaturated. They also contain a high concentration of dietary fibber, vitamins and potassium. This juice is an excellent choice to company your meal times.

Category : Beverages

Difficulty : Easy

Preparing time : 10 minutes

Ingredients

- 2 ripe avocados, halved and flesh removed

- 4 tablespoons palm sugar syrup (or you can just mix palm/sugar sugar with 2 tablespoons of water), other option is using Vanilla syrup.

- 10 ice cubes, crushed

Directions

Combine avocado flesh with other ingredients and puree in blender until smooth.

Avocado Soda:
Remembered this old thread when I was making grape soda today, had some avocados. Thought, "Hmmmmmmmm, What could possibly go wrong?"
So here goes.

First Experiment.
Modification of a very good recipe for an avocado shake.
(Take in mind, I'm willing to sacrifice my body to science.)

1 really yummy avocado, small. (Yes I tasted it, it almost ended up not in the blender.)
About 3/4 cup sweetened condensed milk. ( I know I'm risking death here, especially considering the fact that the SCM is 4 YEARS past its best by date)
Approx. 3 cups water. To thin it out.
Approx. 1/4 cup sugar
1/8 tsp. Red Star® Côte des Blancs dry yeast

Take in mind, I'm working according to my theory of soda, which is, if it tastes good before fizz, it's likely to taste good after fizzzzz.
Prior to fizz this tastes great, much like the shake. Flavor is mostly that of the SCM with the nutty nice overtones of avocado.
So it's now in the bottles and I'm waiting ever so patiently for the end product. Most likely on Friday.
I'll post the end results, with a link to my blog for the overall experience, and photos.
Hooray for science! I wonder if my life policy covers accidental suicide?:cross:

I'm incredibly interested in how this comes out AN.. let us know!

Avocado Soda
Experiment 1
How it all worked out.
Results were...... mixed.
1. For the size of the batch, way too much yeast. It tasted a bit too yeasty, and it carbed very quickly. In fact, when I went to test the pressure, the EZ Cap let loose a shower of green foam. My wife claims that I have invented the Ultimate Shrek Soda.
As a result, myself and my kitchen were in need of a cleaning.
2. The next bottle was pressure released in the sink, with slightly less mess.
3. The less exploded bottle was tested for flavor after a few hours in the refrigerator. Very MEH. I'm not a fan of too much fizz, gets in the way of the flavor. Had more of a yeasty flavor than I like.
4. The more exploded bottle was taste tested the next day. About half the bottle was a creamy rich head. It was SPECTACULAR. It tasted like when you get a A&W root beer float and you mix the soft serve ice cream in with the root beer for the perfect creamy confection. Yeah, it was awesome. The bottom of the bottle was about the consistency of skim milk. It had the nuttiness of an avocado, tasted slightly like root beer. But, not a repeat for me.
Conclusion:
For my next experiment with avocado soda, I'll skip the sweetened condensed milk and try a simple syrup instead. I'll also decrease the yeast appropriately. However...
The next time I make root beer, I fully plan on adding SCM to the batch to add a slight caramel flavor, and hopefully get that nice creamy head on top. I'll also back off the fill level to let it develop fully in the bottle.
Experiment #1 final totals
For Avocado Soda = Failure
For Creamy Goodness = Mad Science RULES!