3 Things You Can Actually Cook With Mountain Dew

Mountain Dew’s been many things to America. It was actually created back in the 1940s to be a lemon-lime mixer for whiskey, and then evolved into a soda pop named “Mountain Dew” after an old timey nickname for moonshine. From there, somehow, we got to an iconic soda brand that comes in a neon rainbow and is culturally intertwined with all things extreme. 

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Seriously, Mountain Dew’s come a long way. At this point we’re kind of not surprised to see it everywhere, in almost any flavor―which is maybe why we were genuinely surprised to find out that people have been cooking with Mountain Dew for a while now. Here are three foods you can actually make with the Dew.

Mountain Dew Cake

You might find a few Mountain Dew cake recipes that involve at-home mixing and teaspoons of baking powder (or soda, whichever it is). But most of the Mountain Dew cake recipes you’ll find online revolve around this simple formula: lemon box cake mix, lemon or vanilla pudding, and some fun icings and toppings. Plus a can, or most of a bottle, of Mountain Dew, which replaces the water as called for in the box recipe. 

Whatever variant you go with, all Mountain Dew cakes (reasonably) lean toward lighter, vanilla/lemon flavors. Remember, Mountain Dew and that elusive flavor profile? It is lemon-limey, but (and this is the majority impression) the addition of concentrated OJ that gives it such a unique, slightly fleshier and softer citrus flavor profile. All of which sound perfect when added to a lemon pudding box cake! (Bonus points: most recipes add other complimentary flavors like coconut and pineapple.) Genuinely thinking about trying this soft, citrusy cake in the spring. 

Mountain Dew Barbecue 

Yes it does rhyme, but before you get excited and start basting and marinating all your large format meats with Mountain Dew, we have a couple important notes. Like other sodas, notably Dr Pepper and Coke, Mountain Dew does have some usefulness in the world of barbecue. But unlike Dr Pepper and Coke (both of which have darker, more sugar-and-spice-y flavor profiles), from what we can tell Mountain Dew doesn’t have as high a success rate when it comes to applications like marinating, basting, or, as this guy tried, injecting (he gave it a 2/10). That said, Reddit’s a fan of “fantastic” Mountain Dew-soaked ribs.

It makes sense Mountain Dew would have some happy spaces in the low-and-slow barbecue world, since like any soda it can add sweetness. One Redditor does something we’d like to try―popping an open can of Mountain Dew in the smoker “during the first 3 hours (smoke stage).” Then, after the soda’s acquired a bit more huskiness from the smoker, they actually pour the remnants of the can over their pork shoulder. (And that gets a 10/10 every time.) Point being: there are more than a few ways to experiment, and apparently a community to discuss it with. 

Mountain Dew Apple Dumplings

This might seem very niche―not a ton of us actually make apple dumplings, even if we’re bakers and dessert lovers. But Mountain Dew Apple Dumplings is actually one of the most common and popular Mountain Dew recipes out there―so much so that even The Pioneer Woman herself has a recipe for it. Bonus points, just like the Mountain Dew Cake recipes, the Mountain Dew apple dumpling recipes we’ve seen also use pre-fab ingredients like crescent rolls. In her recipe, the Pioneer Woman uses a can of Mountain Dew to help cook the apple dumplings and create what she calls “the most delicious sauce ever,” with the help of lots of butter.