A Cola-Based Instant Noodle
A new design concept places Pepsi Max at the centre of the instant noodle aisle. The mockup proposes a ‘Sticky Cola Chicken’ Pot Noodle, presented in a 90g pot branded with the distinctive black and blue of the zero-sugar soft drink.
While the combination is certainly unusual for a mainstream UK product, cooking with cola is not an entirely new idea. Slow-cooked ham or braised chicken wings using the caramelised sugar and acidity of the drink is a well-established, if slightly kitsch, home-cooking technique, particularly in North America. This concept applies that sweet-savoury profile to the ‘just add boiling water’ format, a territory Pot Noodle has explored before with other flavours.
The Current Pot Noodle Range
The current Pot Noodle line-up is a broad church. It covers foundational flavours like Chicken & Mushroom and Beef & Tomato, alongside the long-running Original Curry. The brand has also branched into more specific meal profiles, with variants such as Chicken Fajita and Chinese Chow Mein available in the standard pot size.
There’s a clear precedent for sweet and sticky flavours. The range includes a Sweet & Sour noodle and, in the larger King Pot format, a Sticky Rib version. This Pepsi Max concept would sit squarely in that sweet-meets-savoury category. At the other end of the spectrum is the famously spicy Bombay Bad Boy, also available as a King Pot, which has established itself as the brand’s heat-focused offering, alongside the Piri Piri Chicken flavour.
Soft Drinks In The Food Aisle
Brand crossovers between soft drinks and savoury foods are rare, but not unheard of. The most common route is into barbecue sauces, marinades and glazes, where the high sugar content and caramel notes of a dark cola can work well. Dr Pepper, for example, is a popular ingredient in pulled pork recipes.
Bringing a drink brand directly onto the front of a savoury snack pot is a much bolder move. It pushes the partnership beyond a simple ingredient mention into a full co-branding exercise, leveraging the recognition of two entirely separate household names. The caption that accompanied the image read simply: “Pepsi Max Sticky Cola Chicken Pot Noodle. Are you brave enough?”
What the real range looks like
The real Pot Noodle range features classics like Original Curry and Chicken & Mushroom, spicy options like Bombay Bad Boy, and sweet-savoury flavours including Sticky Rib and Sweet & Sour. The conceptual Pepsi Max Sticky Cola Chicken flavour would align most closely with this latter group.
- Pot Noodle Sweet Sour
- Pot Noodle Beef Tomato
- Pot Noodle Original Curry
- Pot Noodle Chicken Fajita
- King Pot Noodle Sticky Rib
- Pot Noodle Beef and Tomato
- Pot Noodle Chicken Mushroom
- King Pot Noodle Beef Tomato
- Pot Noodle Piri Piri Chicken
- Pot Noodle Chinese Chow Mein
Frequently asked questions
- What is Pot Noodle?
- Pot Noodle is a brand of instant noodle snacks available in the UK. The dehydrated noodles, vegetables, and flavour powders come in a plastic pot, and the meal is prepared by adding boiling water.
- Is cooking chicken with cola a real recipe?
- Yes, it is a genuine, if unconventional, cooking method. Cola is sometimes used as a base for marinades or as a braising liquid for meats like chicken wings or pulled pork, where its sugar content creates a sweet, sticky glaze when reduced.
- Is the Pepsi Max Sticky Cola Chicken Pot Noodle a real product?
- No, it is a Snackfish — a mockup created by UK Snack Attack — and it is not sold anywhere. It is a conceptual design and not an official product from Pot Noodle or PepsiCo.
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You have been Snackfished!
Snackfish :
[sn-a-ck-fish] verb
A snack that lies about its legitimacy as an official product online for internet clout and attention. Most commonly fabricated in Adobe Photoshop or using the unofficial Snackfish AI