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popcorn colour changing
Posted: Wed Jul 23, 2008 4:12 pm
by laura-kate
how would i change the colour of popcorn before it pops. like i don't know boil it in something then dry it out and pop it maybe, would it change colour?

Re: popcorn colour changing
Posted: Wed Jul 23, 2008 4:15 pm
by laura-kate
it might maybe you should just try it and see if it changes, you could just do that for a project i'm not really sure aye, have you asked like your science teacher or something cause they might know.
Re: popcorn colour changing
Posted: Wed Jul 23, 2008 4:15 pm
by laura-kate
lol
Re: popcorn colour changing
Posted: Wed Jul 23, 2008 8:47 pm
by deleted-2131
laura-kate,
Welcome to the Ask an Expert Forums. What do you know about the internal structure of a popcorn kernel (the outer hull, the pericap, etc)? Knowing the structure of the popcorn kernel and how it pops will help you figure out how you might be able to change the color of the popcorn. Are you trying to change the color of the popcorn once it is popped (e.g. from white to another color) or change the color of the kernel before it is popped? Do some research about how popcorn pops and post back with a hypothesis about whether or not you think you could change the color of the popcorn. Once you've posted your hypothesis, we'll answer your question further and help you brainstorm ways to test it.
Good luck on the project!
more popcorn changing
Posted: Thu Jul 24, 2008 2:27 pm
by laura-kate
i want to change the colour of the popcorn from white to a different colour when it pops so it will pop into a different colour.
i also want to see if boiling the popcorn kernels in fruit juice or flavoured water will change the flavour of the popcorn. and should i boil them or just let them soak.
Re: more popcorn changing
Posted: Thu Jul 24, 2008 2:54 pm
by deleted-71712
Hi laura-kate,
Your question about whether boiling or soaking would work better for flavoring popcorn is a good idea for a project -- go learn about the structure of popcorn and develop a hypothesis stating which you think will work better and why. Then try it and see what happens! Even if your hypothesis is wrong, you will still learn something by figuring out what actually happened. One thing that's nice about your project is that the materials are pretty cheap, so if something doesn't work out, you can form a new hypothesis and try again.
Some things you might want to think about as you read: Is the amount of moisture inside a kernel important? How easy is it for water to pass through different parts of the kernel's cover? Are there solvents besides water that might do better? (You'd want to pay attention to whether solvents, dyes, etc are safe to eat.)
A few links to get you started:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Popcorn
http://www.foodnavigator-usa.com/news/n ... s-identify
http://www.physorg.com/news3722.html
http://ezinearticles.com/?How-Does-Popc ... id=1186474
Keep us posted on your plans and progress!
Amanda
Re: more popcorn changing
Posted: Thu Jul 24, 2008 4:15 pm
by deleted-2131
laura-kate,
Just so you know, we ask that you keep all you posts about your project on a single message topic; this helps the Experts keep track of your project. I have gone ahead and combined this message topic with your other one.
Re: popcorn colour changing
Posted: Thu Jul 24, 2008 6:34 pm
by laura-kate
i have decided to soak the kernels instead of boil them as heat makes popcorn pop. i am not sure how long to soak them because i have just read that popcorn kernels have liquid in them, and i don't know how long i should dry them out. should i dry them out at all

oh and thanks for the help already. you guys are great.

Re: popcorn colour changing
Posted: Fri Jul 25, 2008 7:44 am
by deleted-71712
laura-kate,
As I was hinting at before, any "which would work better" question that you have is a good basis for an experiment -- it's nice to have several things to compare rather than trying just one procedure and saying whether it works or not. In this case, you could use unaltered kernels as the control and compare to soaking for 2 hours, 4 hours, 6 hours -- or whatever intervals you decide to try. You could try a mini experiment beforehand to see whether the color looks like it's getting inside after minutes, hours, days, or what. Or, you could soak them all for the same amount of time and make your independent variable the length of time kernels are dried before you pop them. Then you'd want to look at one or more dependent variables, like the percentage of kernels that pop, how dark the color is, etc.
Amanda