Fat-soluble food colors are almost unknown to people inexperienced in pastry arts. The fact is that their scope of application is not as wide as that of water-soluble ones. However, it's simply impossible to imagine the life of a real chocolatier without them. According to technology, other food colors are not suitable for chocolate. The base of chocolate is cocoa butter. Try mixing fat with water - you will get nothing. Fat and water molecules repel each other, so even a drop of water can disrupt the structure of the chocolate. Application of food colors These colors are suitable not only for coloring chocolate. Have you made a stunning cake cream and want to color it? For custard and meringue-based creams, a water-soluble color is suitable. If your cream is made on a mixed base (i.e., both water and fat are present), you can use both types of colors. If there is no water in the composition at all - take a fat-soluble color. For glazes, both options will also work. Cocoa butter is colored exclusively with a fat-soluble color. For dough, water-soluble colors are used. Types of fat-soluble food colors Fat-soluble colors can be dry and liquid. Liquid colors are made on an oil base, most often coconut oil. When coloring chocolate with them, it is necessary to warm the color to a similar temperature. Keep in mind that the crystallization temperatures of cocoa butter and coconut oil do not match. Therefore, the chocolate after tempering may turn out more matte. Dry dust colors are considered the best for chocolate. They have a number of undeniable advantages over other types. Advantages of dry fat-soluble colors Dry colors do not affect the texture of the chocolate. When adding oil-based colors, the chocolate becomes more fluid. A dry color is more concentrated, hence the colors will turn out brighter. They have a long shelf life. Add the dry color to the chocolate or cocoa butter and thoroughly blend with an immersion blender. Then you will get a uniform, evenly colored mass. If this is not done, undissolved grains may remain in the chocolate. Why can't you take a regular dry water-soluble color? Water-soluble dry colors give pale, unexpressive shades when coloring chocolate. In a fatty environment, the pigment simply does not develop. But when you eat this chocolate, the pigment gets into its native watery environment (your mouth) and manifests itself in full force. An unexpected bonus in the form of a brightly colored mouth is guaranteed. Candurin. This magnificent shiny powder gives baked goods and confections a mysterious metallic or pearlescent luster. Candurin can be used together with any food colors. Most often used for surfaces as a final decoration. You can cover a finished figure with candurin, or apply it directly to the mold before casting. How to choose a fat-soluble color If you occasionally need to tint a cream or chocolate decoration, choose any of the available options. Those who decide to connect their life with the chocolatier profession should pay attention to professional options. For example, Sosa dry fat-soluble color. The colors of this Spanish brand are very popular among chocolatiers. It is a concentrated powder with an unlimited shelf life. I would like to dwell separately on a revolutionary method of coloring chocolate from the Belgian company Barry Callebaut. Its IBC brand recently presented a novelty - Power Flowers colors. They are made on the basis of tempered cocoa butter and dry colors. Power Flowers capsules are made in the shape of a flower with four petals. The pigment concentration is so high that 1/4 of a capsule is enough to color 400 grams of chocolate in a pastel shade. And most importantly - there are only 4 basic colors in the palette. Blue, red, yellow, and white. By mixing them in different proportions, you can get more than 80 different colors! A special table indicates the dosage of basic colors to obtain the desired shade. This approach makes coloring chocolate easy, fast, and convenient, taking it to a new level of comfort. The free Power Flowers smartphone app opens up even more possibilities. It contains not only the Color Master table but also a calculator for calculating the colorant content in the finished product. You can also save recipes for your favorite colors to quickly find them when needed. In Ukraine, Power Flowers are presented exclusively in our online store. We keep up with the times and strive to provide our beloved customers with the best products on the global market. We will be glad to welcome you to our friendly pastry family!