Ever tried putting peanuts in Coke? We also scratched our heads when we first heard about this concept, but apparently it is absolutely something folks do, especially in the South. Yes, the South is known for its famous fried green tomatoes and biscuits and gravy, but Coke and peanuts may top these other ones as the most bizarre.

After all, Albert Einstein once said, “If at first the idea is not absurd, then there is no hope for it.” Does this mean peanuts and Coke can actually be a genius combination? Well, let’s start by looking at where this trend first began.

There’s tremendous controversy online over who, what, when, and why this trend was invented. Food historian Rick McDaniel speculates that the combination of Coke and peanuts dates back to the early 1900s just when Coke was gaining immense popularity throughout the country. Local general stores stocked a lot of Coke alongside packaged shelled peanuts.

At the same time, farming was the major source of economic growth in the South.

It was said that workers didn’t want to touch peanuts with their dirty hands from a hard day’s work and so would dump the peanuts directly in their Coke bottles.