Make Your Own Playdough

The great thing about playdough is kids of all ages love it. The great things about *homemade* playdough are it’s easy, simple, nontoxic and only takes about 10 minutes. 

What you’ll need:

• 1 cup flour
• 1 cup water
• 2 teaspoons cream of tartar
• 1/3 cup salt
• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• food coloring

This easy homemade playdough recipe makes a lot; probably equal to 2-3 containers from the store.

1. In a large saucepan, add 1 cup of flour, 2 teaspoons of cream of tarter, and 1/3 cup of salt. (The salt keeps it from sticking and also helps preserve it, so you definitely want that in there.)
2. Add 1 cup of water and 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil.
3. Turn your burner on medium/low and stir. Don’t worry if it’s lumpy.
4. Keep stirring until it starts getting a little solid. It may take 2-3 minutes if it’s still heating up, but if your stove is already hot, this may only take 20-30 seconds.
5. At this point, add the food coloring right away. It’s a total pain to add it once it thickens up too much.
6. The dough will start getting thicker and a little lumpy; keep stirring.
7. You know it’s done once the dough starts gathering together around the spoon.
8. Take it out of the saucepan and put it on some waxed paper or a plate to cool.
9. Once it’s cooled, knead the playdough for a minute or two to get out any lumps.

For storage, just toss it in a ziploc bag. If it does become dry, you can work a few drops of water into it.