Lime soda

Squeeze lime juice into a glass, add sugar or syrup and a pinch of salt if you like, then pour in chilled sparkling water. Stir briefly and add ice; pouring the fizz in last helps keep it lively.

Sweet lime soda is made with sugar or syrup; salted versions use salt, often with a little sugar as well. In parts of South Asia, you can order it sweet, salted or “mixed”, meaning both.

Its sharp, fizzy taste works especially well alongside spicy or fried food, such as pakoras, kebabs and chaat. A salted version also pairs nicely with savoury snacks.

You can use still water, but it will be limeade rather than soda. For fizz, use chilled soda water or sparkling water; add it just before serving.

Keep a bottled drink tightly capped in the fridge and use it soon, while it is still fizzy. Fresh lime soda is best made just before drinking, since lime juice and ice gradually flatten and dilute it.

Yes, but limeade is usually still and already sweetened, so it will not give the same fizz. Add sparkling water to limeade and reduce or skip any extra sugar.