Add food coloring to your sugar water and make sure sure that it is pretty dark in color for the best result. This means that the water could only hold the sugar if both were very hot. With some luck and patience you will have a tasty scientific treat! Science Bob welcome to sciencebob. You will need A wooden skewer you can also use a clean wooden chopstick A clothespin 1 cup of water cups of sugar A tall narrow glass or jar What to do Clip the wooden skewer into the clothespin so that it hangs down inside the glass and is about 1 inch 2.
We added our favorite colors of food coloring to the jars before adding the sugar syrup, but we opted to forego the different candy flavorings since my kids like the great taste of the natural sugar. Slowly insert the sugared wooden sticks into the solution.
You can use a clothespin as shown to keep your sticks in place. You need to leave room for the new rock crystals to grow! Note: Make sure that your sugared sticks are completely dry! If they are too wet when you put them into the hot sugar solution, all of the seed crystals will fall off, and the rock candy crystals will not grow as easily. If desired, you may cover the tops of the jars with a coffee filter to keep any dust out.
After about a week of watching the crystal growth, you will have yourself a batch of sparkling sugar rock candy! When the crystals have stopped growing, simply remove the sticks from the jar you may need to wiggle them around a bit to break free of any other crystals that have grown within the jar and enjoy!
So pretty, SO tasty, and totally worth the wait! These rock candies would make a great gift idea — especially when added to a coffee or tea gift basket!
Temperature can also effect the size and formation of the candy crystals, so make sure that you are bringing the solution to a full rolling boil during the cooking process.
Wooden skewers, wood sticks, and popsicle sticks are the best options for making rock candy because they are sturdy and take the seeding process well. Cotton string may also be used, however, you will need to weigh down the end of the string which may result in the weight becoming embedded inside the rock candy crystals. Lollipop sticks may also be used, but are not recommended since they are prone to becoming soggy after soaking in the solution for too long.
Next, use a butter knife to chip away at any remaining crystals, OR, add a bit more water to the jar to cover the sugar crystals and microwave it in 30 second increments until all the remaining sugar has melted and can be poured down the drain. If there is extra sugar in the liquid once the solution becomes fully saturated, it will simply settle at the bottom of the pot.
Try to avoid pouring too much of the excess sugar into the jars, though, or you may end up with a very thick layer of rock candy crystals at the bottom of the jar! No, powdered sugar will not work well to create rock candy. Regular granulated white sugar works best for making homemade rock candy. Any additional questions? Leave them in the comments for us! These rock candy sticks are a super fun STEM activity for kids of all ages, and everyone will enjoy the tasty treat that this fun science experiment creates!
Note that a top layer of crystal will form. This is OK. Once the candy has reached the desired size, break that top layer of crystal up with a fork before removing the candy. Transfer the rock candy to an empty jar or glass keep the clothespins to balance it and allow it to dry for 1 to 2 hours. Serve and enjoy, or wrap in plastic wrap to save for later. Use any flavor and coloring combinations you like. You can go with an obvious combination such as purple for grape rock candy or do something totally off the wall and make the flavor a surprise.
A wooden skewer or popsicle stick are both good options for rock candy. They're easy to work with and make removing the candy a little easier if it gets stuck to the bottom crystals. You can also use a cotton string , you'll need to tie it to a weight of some kind, so it doesn't float in the syrup.
While a paper clip is a common solution for this, a hard candy with a hole in the middle e. Glass is recommended because it is a relatively nonporous material that will produce better crystals. Foam cups and some plastic cups are more porous and may attract the sugar crystals away from the skewer, which is where you want them to grow. Some people have had success with plastic cups, so it is worth experimenting with your options.
Regular white granulated sugar seems to be the best for making rock candy. In some informal experiments, people have found that it produces larger crystals than other types of sugar. It's also the least expensive option, which is an important consideration because you need a lot of sugar to make rock candy.
The crystals will grow on the bottom and sides of the jar, and they're pretty tough to remove. Rather than discarding the glass jars, they can be cleaned and used again.
Begin by dumping out all of the syrup and any loose sugar crystals. Fill the jars with hot, soapy water and place them in a pan with about 3 inches of water. Boil the water for 10 minutes for safety, watch it carefully as you would when canning , then turn off the heat. Let the jars cool to the touch and use a fork to break up the sugar crystals.
Discard the sugar and wash the jars as normal. Recipe Tags:. Actively scan device characteristics for identification. Use precise geolocation data. Time to make the sugar solution.
Take a medium saucepot and add in the water. Place it on the stovetop and turn the heat to medium. Once the water starts to simmer add in one of the cups of sugar. After that sugar dissolves add in another cup and repeat with the last cup of sugar.
Stir the mixture and bring it to a boil. Once it comes to a boil add in the food coloring and any flavoring that you may have. Mix it in and then turn off the heat. Allow the hot sugar solution to cool for 20 minutes. This is the base solution for rock candy. Note: Please do not touch the liquid or the pot it is extremely hot and will burn you.
Young children should have adult supervision when making rock candy at home. Next, you need some sort of container to put the solution in. I generally use a large mason jar for my rock candy ml size.
That, size jar will make one large rock candy. Or can can try it with smaller containers. Use a funnel so it is easier to fill up the jar. Leave about an inch to an inch to two inches of space from the top.
Add a circular ring to the top of the jar and then dip one of your sugar sticks in it and attach it with a clothespin. You can add it to the individual jars instead. Now it is time to wait for those sugar crystals to develop. This will usually take 5 to 7 days for a good amount of crystals to form making that awesome rock candy. After a few days, you will be able to see the progress of rock candy. Notice the film of sugar that has grown on the very top surface of the sugar solution, this is normal.
Time to remove the candy from the solution. Use a fork and gently break apart the thin layer of sugar crystals on the top. Pull the stick with the rock candy out of the solution and place it on another glass to dry. This will allow any dripping sugar water to be contained. Let them dry for about 4 hours. The longer you allow them to sit in the water the larger the crystals will grow. It is possible that so many crystals will grow in the glass or cup and the stick will get stuck.
This glass is a little too narrow of a glass. I have found an ml size mason jar works great, it is about 3. But it will only make one large candy with this recipe.
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