You might be skeptical about this combination, but it tastes like strawberry yogurt in the best way. A Korean drink called Milkis, a fruit milk soda, inspires this drink! It’s creamy, sweet, and so delicious.

It’s also reminiscent of a Korean dessert called hwachae: strawberry milk, lemon-lime soda, and fruit served in a big bowl. You can easily make this drink at home with pre-bought strawberry milk, soda, and cut fruit. It’s perfect on a hot day or when you want to use up leftover ingredients.

Here’s how to make your own strawberry milk soda at home.

What is Milkis?

Milkis is a popular Korean creamy soda drink made by Lotte, one of the biggest corporations in South Korea. It’s made with milk, carbonated water, sugar, and fruit flavorings like strawberry, melon, banana, grape, and more.

The drink has been around since the 1990s and initially skyrocketed in popularity after a commercial with a famous Hong Kong movie star. Lotte first made the drink for students who needed an energy boost after long nights of studying.

Now, it’s a carbonated beverage popular worldwide, particularly in Korea, the United States, and Hong Kong. You’ll often find it at parties or in desserts.

Its can design is also iconic and recognizable from its tall, skinny white can with a cute drawing of a couple.

The name also combines “soft milk” and “sweet kiss” in Korean!

What Milkis is not: carbonated sweet milk.

What Does Milkis Taste Like?

To me, Milkis tastes like a sweet, thinner, drinkable yogurt drink.

The lemon-lime soda gives it a refreshing, tart taste balanced with the creamy milk. Another way to describe it is that Milkis tastes like a yogurt cream soda!

Some also say it tastes similar to yogurt drinks like Calpis or Yakult, sweet probiotic milk beverages in little bottles.

My personal favorite flavors are strawberry and original, with peach coming in second.

It’s super refreshing on a hot day and also makes for great cocktails, especially with soju.

What is Hwachae?

Hwachae is a Korean fruit punch, traditionally served in a scooped-out watermelon made with strawberry milk, cut fruits, and a lemon-lime soda, usually Chilsung cider.

Usually people will add grapes, strawberries, watermelon, mangoes, and blueberries.

It’s deliciously creamy and refreshing, packed with fruity flavor. It’s insanely refreshing, especially on summer days when you need something sweet and refreshing to replace all the electrolytes you lost from sweating, haha.

It’s unlike anything I’ve ever had.

What Does Hwachae Taste Like?

Hwachae is sweet and milky, with a general fruit taste, most notably watermelon, and has a refreshing kick from the lemon-lime soda.

It’s creamy and sugary, which are the most prominent tastes. But the watermelon soaks up the milk soda and tastes so good together.

Comparatively, Milkis is more yogurt-forward and milk and soda-balanced, while hwachae is more creamy and sugary.

Can You Mix Soda with Milk?

Yes! It’s perfectly fine to mix soda with milk. It might seem different if you’re not used to this combination, but it’s pretty common.

Think: Italian cream soda, dirty soda, doodh (a popular cold drink during Ramadan), ice cream floats, cocktails, etc. Dairy and soda are not new combinations and are enjoyed around the world.

The result is a creamy, fizzy, sweet drink! Plus, you can customize it as much as you want.

How to Make Fruit Syrups

If you want to flavor your milk soda, making a homemade fruit sauce or syrup with frozen or fresh fruit is best.

You can make fruit syrup by either blending your desired fruit, sugar, and water in a blender or cooking it in a small pot until the sugar dissolves and the mixture turns into a sticky syrup.

Luckily, the fruit syrup ratios of water and sugar stay the same, and you can swap out the fruit freely.

Once you make your sauce, you can strain out the seeds and fruit pulp or add them to your drink for extra flavor.

Alternatively, you can blend your fruit, sugar, and water, strain it, and cook it until the mixture reduces into a syrup.

Can I Use Sparkling Water or Club Soda?

Of course! This recipe actually uses sparking water instead of soda. I don’t like overly sweet drinks and prefer adding my own sugar so I can control how sweet the drink is.

If you have some extra lime soda lying around, feel free to use that instead. Just note that your drink will already have sugar, so maybe you’ll omit the sugar from your syrup.

You can also use flavored milk, like strawberry milk, if you have that on hand. That way, you don’t need to make syrup and can add the milk directly into your soda.

Again, the downside of using flavored milk is that it will already be sweetened. If you’re being cautious about sugar consumption, making this drink from scratch or with ingredients is better.

When to Make Milk Soda

Milk sodas are really popular during summer or at parties. They’re a perfect base for making some yummy cocktails (try a Melona cocktail), to the point where you won’t even taste the alcohol.

It’s a great drink to make in big batches since you can quickly source these ingredients from the store and mix them in a drink pitcher. You can also switch it up and have multiple different flavors for people to try.

Tips

Here are tips for making the best strawberry milk soda:

• If you want to add lemon or lime, don’t squeeze the juice into your drink because it will curdle your milk (acid causes proteins to denature).
• You can make your carbonated water ahead of time and use it if you have a soda streamer or equivalent.
• If you’re making a big batch for a party, measure all your ingredients and set them aside. Then, mix them all together so you don’t lose track of how much of one thing you’ve added.
• For an alcoholic version, add 1-2 shots of soju or unflavored hard liquor to your drink.