NATURAL COLORS
12/28/2021
For centuries we have been using natural resources as a way to enhance the appearance of different products like food items, cosmetic products, even clothing. You may be wondering, what makes a color natural? Follow along with us as we see what makes up natural colorants, and how they influence the Chef Rubber Natural Color Lines.
NATURAL PIGMENTS: WHERE DO THEY COME FROM? For centuries we have been using natural resources as a way to enhance the appearance of different products like food items, cosmetic products, and clothing. You may be wondering, what makes a colorant natural? Keep reading to learn about the 4 main groups of where natural pigments are derived from:
Carotenoid- Carotenoids are what gives fruits and vegetables like sweet potatoes and pumpkins their color. Pigments like red, yellow and orange are made with carotenoids.
Chlorophyll- A naturally occurring pigment that is found in all green plants. Most known as green.
Anthocyanin- This is where purple and blue are derived from. Foods like grapes, blueberries and even cranberries have this pigment in them and that’s how these foods get such a deep and rich hue.
Curcumin- Also known as turmeric- it’s not only a root of the curcuma longa plant, but it’s also a rich pigment for achieving a deep yellow.
WHAT’S NATURAL AT CHEF RUBBER? Chef Rubber food colors are available in multiple forms – from powder, to liquid, gel and paste. Which to choose will depend on the dessert, confection or beverage that is being created. The two main categories in colors for the food industry are water soluble and fat dispersible (lakes and dyes). What does that mean? A water-soluble colorant works best when the water content in the recipe is higher than the fat content. The best example would be when making macaron batter – the most common selection isa gel or water-based powder color that is easily mixed with the water content in the egg whites. Similarly, a fat dispersible color added to a fat-bases product like chocolate will work significantly better than adding a water-soluble colorant.
FUN FACTS ABOUT FOOD COLOR:
- Yellow and Red combined make you hungry.
- Provide decorative and artistic freedoms
- Colors can trick you into tasting things that aren’t there.
TIPS FOR USING NATURAL COLORANTS:
- Back natural colors with white to really make colors pop.
- Allow time for natural pigment to develop
- Keep colors out of direct light, to help with fading.
NATURAL FAT SOLUBLE COLORANTS NATURAL FAT BASED POWDERS (Oil- Soluble) Creating powdered pigment is the base for all natural food color. This line of fat dispersible powders are derived from natural sources like plants, fruits and vegetables to achieve their color. Liposoluble powders disperse into fat-based contents like cocoa butter, butter, and cream. These powders are opaque and can be used to add direct color by petal dusting, or painting. Fat-based confections that use these powders include chocolate, butter cream, fondant (as a dry application), cookies, cake batters, even ice cream!
NATURAL COLORED COCOA BUTTER
Many may not know this, but our natural cocoa butter collection has been around since the early Chef Rubber years. Starting with our Natural and Pearl collections, then recently we’ve released our two newest lines- Zen and Infused. Each of these collections are derived from all-natural ingredients; plants, herbs, vegetables, and any other sources that are naturally occurring to create pigment. Currently we offer 4 lines of natural cocoa butter colors, each unique in their own way. Read on to find out more.