Color-changing Food

[bigchef]

Check this out:

http://food102.blogspot.com/

It changes colour as you blow on it or with the addition of acid. An idea what this cool ingridient might be and where we can get some?

[_john]

Here is some Japanese color changing yakisoba. It is called chameleon yakisoba or 3 color yakisoba. It has been presented on TV several times. I don't think it is something meant to be eaten. It is more of a science experiment. Yakisoba is made with Chinese style noodles. Chinese style noodles are made with a strong alkali solution called kansui. The alkali noodles react with the red cabbage juice and then react again with the lemon juice.

[emannths]

Looks like you have to add acid to the current incarnation. It looks like they're still working on the color-changes-when-you-blow-on-it one. Here's a more direct link.

It'll take some good ideas to elevate this from a gimmick. Not that a gimmick isn't fun every now and then... :-)

If you like this idea, here's an excerpt from an article about natural pH indicators (paywall req'd):

Most people are surprised to learn of these color changes in plant juices. How many people would guess that blueberry juice is bright red in acid or that cherry juice is dark green in base? Especially interesting are the extracts from red cabbage, radish skin, rhubarb skin, and turnip skin, which act as universal indicators....Natural indicators in red apple skin, beets, blueberries, red cabbage, cherries, grape juice, red onion, yellow onion, peach skin, pear skin, plum skin, radish skin, rhubard skin, tomato skin, and turnip skin were examined...

Edited July 8, 2011 by emannths (log)

[MelissaH]

Red cabbage juice is a classic pH indicator, and because it's edible, it's popular among teachers. As far as food that changes color when you blow on it due to a pH change, that sounds more far-fetched to me; you'd probably have better luck with something that's thermochromic, although I can't think of anything thermochromic that I'd want to eat, off the top of my head.

MelissaH

[Kouign Aman]

If its close enough to the pK, could be the CO2 exhaled could push it over, no?