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Homemade natural food colouring

July 28, 2020 by Magali Mutombo

Homemade natural food colouring
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Homemade natural food colouring is so easy to make. Adding color to your food is another refreshing way to give it more personality. I like food coloring because it gives me another perspective on food and makes it captivating. I usually make food coloring for pastries topping like buttercream, but it can be used for anything. Use your imagination!

Natural coloring vs artificial

blue food colouring

Homemade natural food colouring is the best quality due to the lack of chemicals and preservatives in it. Food colouring is natural when it comes from fruits, vegetables, animals and minerals.

On the other hand, chemical lab creates artificial food coloring that contains preservatives and other chemicals. There have been studies showing a link between the consumption of artificial food colors, a sodium benzoate preservative and increased hyperactivity, cancerous cells, etc. My simple rule of thumb is to choose something that was created by God over something created in a lab. Just my personal preference.

How to make homemade natural food colouring?

green food colouring mixture

The following food colors are all plant based and safe to use with anything. Also, the following do not transfer their tastes to the food. You can also make secondary colors by mixing the following primary colors. For example, yellow and red will give you orange. 

Is natural food coloring safe?

green food colouring in a glass jar

Yes. Natural food coloring is safe since it is made from ingredients that are naturally consumed.

How do you get natural food colouring?

Most of the plant-based food colorants are obtained by extracting the color through boiling or pureeing the plant. 

Does natural food coloring expire?

food colouring in a jar yellow, green, purple, blue, red

The food coloring will last 3 weeks. Always check before using it. If it has any smell and change of color please refrain from using it.

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spinach, beets, turmeric, red cabbage

Homemade natural food colouring

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star 5 from 2 reviews
  • Author: Magali Mutombo
  • Prep Time: 10 min
  • Cook Time: 25 min
  • Total Time: 35 min
  • Category: Condiments
  • Method: Boiling
  • Cuisine: World
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Description

These are food colouring made with natural ingredients.


Ingredients

  • Red: 3 beets peeled
  • Yellow: 1Tbsp of turmeric
  • Purple: 1 red cabbage
  • Green: 1 bunch of spinach
  • Blue: 1 red cabbage + ¼ tbsp of baking soda

Instructions

  1. Roughly chop the vegetables and put them in a small sauce pan with 2 cups of water over medium-high heat. 
  2. Bring them to a boil then reduce to a simmer for 25 min.
  3. Using a blender, puree the vegetables with their cooking water. Strain and transfer to a clean jar.

*For the purple color: remove the cabbage and put the liquid back on the stove until you get a syrupy texture.

*For the blue color: add the baking soda to the purple syrup.

*For the yellow color: add the turmeric to ½ cup of water in a sauce pan and let it simmer for 10 min. Then, let it cool.


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Related

Filed Under: Condiments, Recipes Tagged With: food coloring

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Popovitsch says

    June 22, 2021 at 2:00 pm

    Super ça marche très bien!

    Reply
    • Magali Mutombo says

      June 29, 2021 at 12:20 am

      Super! Je suis contente!

      Reply
  2. Christian Ghisbain says

    December 29, 2021 at 2:08 pm

    Es que cela.ne donnera pas un goût au masepain fait maison?

    Reply
    • Magali Mutombo says

      December 31, 2021 at 5:44 am

      Pour quelle couleur precisement?

      Reply
  3. Michelle says

    July 26, 2022 at 8:19 pm

    Hello,
    Is it good to mix these coloured liquid with butter or whipping cream to make cake decorations? Will they be too watery? Cheers.

    Reply
    • Magali Mutombo says

      August 25, 2022 at 4:39 pm

      Yes, you can mix it with whipping cream or butter. By using a couple of spoons, you will get pastel colors.

      Reply
  4. mirelle says

    March 6, 2024 at 3:16 pm

    Bonjour,

    Je voudrais savoir si les colorants sont Halal ? Je veux essayer pour mes bonbons.
    Merci

    Reply
    • Magali Mutombo says

      March 6, 2024 at 5:24 pm

      Bonjour madame,
      Comme vous pouvez le constater les colorants sont fait à base de legumes ou fruits. Je ne m’y connais pas en nourriture halal donc c’est à vous de le determiner.
      Merci et bonne journée.

      Reply

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