La Tizana (Tropical Venezuelan Fruit Drink) Recipe

Tropical fruit drink
Long Mengtao / EyeEm / Getty Images
Prep: 10 mins
Cook: 0 mins
Total: 10 mins
Servings: 8 to 10 servings

La Tizana is a classic Venezuelan drink, enjoyed at birthday parties, at the beach, in the summer, with an afternoon snack - really for any occasion. The word tizana is the Spanish version of tisane, or herbal remedy/tea, which is appropriate since the tizana is definitely a refreshing pick-me-up. The drink must have its origins in Spanish sangria, but a tizana lacks the red wine and is prepared with a wider variety of tropical fruits. The key ingredient is grenadine (granadina in Venezuela), which gives the tizana its distinctive purple/red color.

To make tizanas, many different kinds of fruit are chopped up and soaked in a mixture of orange juice and limeade. The mixture keeps for a week or so in the fridge, as the fruit flavors intensify. Some people like to mix it with soda before serving. Serve the tizanas with the plastic straws that have a spoon at the end if you can find them, so you can enjoy the fruit that remains in the bottom of the glass once you've finished the drink.

Ingredients

  • 1 medium pineapple
  • 1 mango (or papaya)
  • 15 strawberries
  • 1 1/2 cups green or red grapes
  • 2 ripe bananas
  • 3 oranges
  • 2 to 3 cups orange juice
  • 1 can frozen limeade mix
  • 1/4 grenadine

Steps to Make It

  1. Gather the ingredients.

  2. Peel and chop the pineapple, mango and/or papaya, and strawberries into 1/2 inch dice and add to a large pitcher, including any juice.

  3. Slice the grapes in half and add to the other fruit.

  4. Peel, seed, and chop 2 of the oranges and add.

  5. Cut remaining orange into thin slices and set aside for serving on the rim of each glass.

  6. Peel and slice the banana into rounds, then slice each round in half. Add bananas to the rest of the fruit. You should have about 6 cups of chopped fruit. (Use any kind of fruit that you have on hand - other good choices include peaches, kiwis, apples, etc).

  7. Cover the fruit with about 2 to 3 cups of orange juice and then add the can of frozen limeade mix.

  8. Fill the empty can with water twice and add to the fruit mixture.

  9. Stir in the grenadine syrup, adding more than 1/4 cup if desired to obtain the desired color.

  10. Chill mixture for several hours before serving, allowing the flavors to blend.

  11. To serve, fill each glass 2/3 full, including plenty of chopped fruit, then fill to top with club soda, water, more juice (passion fruit juice would be tasty), or alcohol. Serve glass with a slice of orange on the rim and spoon on the side for the fruit.

Tip

  • Though not traditional, this drink would be delicious as a cocktail, combined with rum, cachaça, or another aguardiente.
Nutrition Facts (per serving)
181 Calories
1g Fat
43g Carbs
2g Protein
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Nutrition Facts
Servings: 8 to 10
Amount per serving
Calories 181
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 1g 1%
Saturated Fat 0g 1%
Cholesterol 0mg 0%
Sodium 4mg 0%
Total Carbohydrate 43g 15%
Dietary Fiber 5g 17%
Protein 2g
Calcium 55mg 4%
*The % Daily Value (DV) tells you how much a nutrient in a food serving contributes to a daily diet. 2,000 calories a day is used for general nutrition advice.
(Nutrition information is calculated using an ingredient database and should be considered an estimate.)