How To Make Oobleck Without Cornstarch
Nowadays, it is amazing how technology keeps on evolving and innovations are constantly made. One of the fascinating things that is catching some attention is oobleck. If you are into science experiments, oobleck is a one of the non-Newtonian fluids made from cornstarch and water. That means oobleck has properties of both liquids and solids.
It is like a gooey liquid that temporarily thickens or solidifies when a force is applied. To put it in layman’s terms, oobleck is similar to the slime that kids usually play. The liquid solidifies or it feels solid when you apply pressure into it.
Make Oobleck Without Cornstarch
Reasons To Make Oobleck
Creating oobleck isn’t just about a fun play game for the children, it could also be a fun science experiment for them to learn. Technically, it is very easy to make this as making oobleck recipe only requires two elements – a cornstarch and a room temperature water.
Once you make the perfect oobleck, you will attain both a solid and a liquid. Making this non newtonian fluid is another way to make slime and a messy play idea for children. It is fun to experience how oobleck appears to be liquid, but once you make a fist and apply pressure to it, it will feel solid.
Why Does Oobleck Feels Solid While Being Liquid?
The reason behind this “magical” effect of oobleck is due to the phenomenon created by a non-Newtonian fluid where it does not follow Newton’s law of viscosity, i.e., constant viscosity independent of stress. In a non-Newtonian fluid, viscosity can change when under force to either more liquid or more solid.
These fluids, like oobleck, can be good for other sensory activities. Other fluids may have an odd characteristic. One good example is the rod-climbing attribute, which means that if you put a rod in them, they appear to cling and climb up it. The case with oobleck is that it solidifies once pressure is put into it.
How To Make Oobleck Without Cornstarch?
Since the main ingredient for making oobleck is cornstarch, you might question if is it possible to make oobleck without cornstarch? The answer is yes. But it could be tricky finding other ingredients to substitute cornstarch.
Finding these materials that could make oobleck needs to be picked meticulously. For example, you can’t use flour as a substitute for cornstarch as it can’t provide the right consistency to create the attribute of the oobleck. Regular wheat flour does not give the consistency the way that cornstarch does.
Using flour will create a sticky paste mixture, instead of the liquid-like mixture when using cornstarch. Aside from that, it will only lead to a real mess instead of having a fun experiment for the kids. It won’t be just as much fun as playing with the real oobleck slime.
If you don’t have cornstarch, there are plenty of ingredients that you can substitute for it. We have laid these substitutes below, as well as on how to make oobleck without cornstarch tips and procedures.
Make Oobleck with Baking Soda Recipe
Baking soda is indeed a versatile ingredient. It is not only used for pastries or cleaning, now, it can be used to make oobleck slime. If you make oobleck using this ingredient, the process could take longer compared to the standard procedures of easy oobleck recipe.
For the equipment, you will need to procure:
- Glass
- Large Bowl
- Coffee filter
- Spoon
- The ingredients needed are:
- 120ml semi-skimmed milk
- 1 tsp of white vinegar
- ½ tsp of baking soda
Procedures:
- In the bowl, pour the semi-skimmed milk and add the white vinegar. Mix them well.
- Solid lumps will then start forming in the mixture. Keep on mixing until the liquid solidifies for a minute or so.
- Get a strainer and strain the mixture. You can put a coffee filter over a glass and pour the liquid into it. Squeeze the strainer until all the liquid is out. The result will be a gooey mixture.
- Place the mixture back into the bowl and add half a teaspoon of baking soda. Start mixing the mixture and mix it well until it resembles the consistency of oobleck. You should have a vibrant result.
Using baking powder can also be used instead of making the oobleck with baking soda. Though the procedure might be a little different, you can still use baking powder instead of baking soda.
Make Oobleck With Tapioca Powder
Aside from baking soda and baking powder, another great way to make oobleck without cornstarch is by using tapioca powder. It also follows an easy recipe and since tapioca powder also behaves the same way as cornstarch, it should provide the same result as you make oobleck with baking soda.
The ingredients you will need are:
- 250g tapioca powder
- 250ml water (at room temperature)
- You will need to have these following tools:
- Large bowl
- Spoon
Procedures:
- Get the bowl and pour the tapioca powder into it.
- Once you have ensured that the water is at room temperature, pour it into the bowl with tapioca powder.
- Mix them well. If the mixture gets too watery, add some extra tapioca powder. Keep on stirring until you get the desired result and the mixture starts to have the right consistency.
Talk about a fun science experiment. You now have an oobleck and it is time to have more fun.
Make Oobleck With Baby Powder
Whipping up a concoction of oobleck with baby powder is very possible. All you need to ensure is to get the baby powder with cornstarch as one of its ingredients. So before you pour this item into your mixture, make sure to check the label of baby powders.
To get started, make sure you have these equipment:
- Bowl
- Spoon
- Also prepare these ingredients:
- 150g baby powder
- 75ml room-temperature water
Procedures:
- After making sure that the baby powder has a cornstarch component, put it into the bowl.
- Add the 75ml of room-temperature water and stir well. The mixture should have more lumps or solids as you mix it.
- If the mixture is too thin or liquidy, add some extra baby powder. Just stir well until it provides the perfect consistency.
Test it out by applying pressure and see if it reacts or becomes solid. If it does, you now have created an oobleck without cornstarch that your kids can enjoy.
What Other Substitutes Can Be Used?
There are several things that you can use as oobleck ingredients if you don’t have cornstarch. For example, you can use potato starch, arrowroot flour and corn flour. They have attributes similar to the cornstarch and should make oobleck perfectly.
If you want to get some color for your oobleck, try to add some food coloring to the mixture. A few droplets should go a long way. Just put some and stir well. The best color for oobleck would be bright green, though, you can use the color of your choice. This is also the color of the Dr Seuss oobleck.
Is Oobleck Edible?
Since oobleck is made for kids to have some fun, some of you might question if it is edible. Though it can be made with some edible ingredients such as cornstarch, potato starch, tapioca powder, and baking powder, they need to be cooked before you can eat them. Baby powder is the most dangerous of them as they could have a variety of harmful ingredients in them.
So avoid eating this slimy mixture and supervise your kids when playing with it. If you will store oobleck, you can use an airtight container and put it in a safe place that is out of reach of the kids.
Can You Save Hard Oobleck?
Though it is in liquid form, cornstarch oobleck can harden, especially when exposed to the air as the liquid could dry out. The good thing is there’s a way to retrieve the same amount of oobleck once it hardens.
The trick is to add more cold water. Start by adding 1 tablespoon of water at a time to the hardened oobleck. In this way, you can avoid a fast dilution of the Oobleck recipe. Add more water until you get your oobleck back.
