https://www.youtube.com/watch?

v=WSRv89CiM-0
Make Yogurt Spheres Using Molecular Gastronomy

Abstract
Imagine if instead of spooning up a bowl of soup, a container of yogurt, or a cup of
pudding you could just pick up and pop in your mouth a round, mess-free, ball-like blob
of one of those. It might feel like snacking rather than eating a meal! In this food science
project you can try exactly that. The simple step-by-step directions will lead you through
trying a fun cooking technique called reverse spherification to turn yogurt into semi-solid
balls, which are called "raviolis." How do you think the yogurt raviolis will look and feel?
Get ready to make this unique snack to find out!
Апстрактан

Замислите када бисте уместо да сипате чинију супе, посуду јогурта или шољу пудинга, могли само
да узмете и гурнете у уста округлу, без нереда, куглицу једног од њих. Можда се осећате као
грицкање, а не као оброк! У овом пројекту науке о храни можете испробати управо то.
Једноставна упутства корак по корак ће вас водити кроз испробавање забавне технике кувања која
се зове реверзна сферификација да бисте јогурт претворили у получврсте куглице, које се називају
„равиоли“. Шта мислите, како ће изгледати и осећати се равиоли са јогуртом? Спремите се да
направите ову јединствену ужину да бисте сазнали!

Увод

Да ли сте знали да било коју храну можете претворити у мале самосталне сфере (лоптице)?
Креативни кувари који воле да комбинују науку са занимљивим начинима представљања и
доживљаја хране су пионири технику која се зове сферификација. Сферификација користи хемију
да трансформише меку, течну храну попут супе, пиреа, сокова, јогурта и пудинга у куглице.
Куглице имају танку желатинасту спољашњу кожу или мембрану без укуса, коју можете лако
отворити у устима да бисте дошли до центра течности. Сферификација и сродна техника која се
зове реверзна сферификација, део су већег покрета хране који се зове молекуларна гастрономија.
Молекуларна гастрономија је област науке о храни која истражује како се састојци наше хране
физички и хемијски мењају када их припремамо и кувамо. Другим речима, молекуларна
гастрономија посматра мале молекуле у нашој храни и како се они мењају под одређеним
условима. (Гастрономија је проучавање брања, припреме и једења добре хране.) Слика 1
приказује сфере које су направљене од зеленог чаја помоћу сферификациј
Figure 1. These are spheres of green tea that have been made using spherification.
(Image credits: Wikimedia Commons, Jlastras, 2009)

How does spherification work? Like much of food science, it is based on a

specific chemical reaction. During spherification the food you want to turn into balls is
mixed in a blender with sodium alginate. Drops of the mixture are then put in a bowl
containing calcium dissolved in water. As soon as the sodium alginate and calcium
come in contact with one another, they undergo a chemical reaction and form a thin gel-
like shell surrounding each drop of the food mixture. The result is spheres of the food
that you can fish out of the calcium bath, rinse, and eat. For more details on the
chemistry involved, you can check out the related Science Buddies project Transform
Drinks Into Semi-Solid Juice Balls That Pop in Your Mouth.

In this science project, you will make "raviolis" out of yogurt using a complimentary
technique, reverse spherification, and investigate how this chemical reaction makes the
yogurt raviolis change over time. Reverse spherification is used when a food already
has calcium in it, like yogurt. During reverse spherification a calcium-rich food is
dropped in to a bowl containing sodium alginate dissolved in water. (This is, as you can
see, the opposite or reverse of normal spherification.) The same gel-like shell forms
around the food as the calcium and sodium alginate react with each other. To
summarize, spherification involves adding a mixture of food and sodium alginate to a
calcium bath, while reverse spherification involves adding a food that already has
calcium to a sodium alginate bath. To learn more about reverse spherification and to
see what this process looks like, check out this video.

In this project, because you are dropping spoonfuls of yogurt rather than small droplets
of a food mixture in to the sodium alginate bath, the results will be larger blobs of food
instead of tiny spheres. The blobs resemble pasta raviolis and are referred to as
"raviolis" by molecular gastronomy chefs. If the yogurt sits in the sodium alginate
solution for increasingly longer amounts of time, how does this affect the gel-like layer
that forms around the yogurt? Will the yogurt get a thicker gel-like layer over time,
making the raviolis bigger? Or will the gel-like layer not change size once it forms? You
will use a digital scale and weigh your homemade yogurt raviolis over time to find out.
So get ready to make some fun, yogurt snacks!

Terms and Concepts

 Spherification
 Reverse spherification
 Molecular gastronomy
 Chemical reactions
 Sodium alginate
 Calcium

Questions

 What are the key chemicals needed for the spherification reaction?
 Where do alginates come from?
 What type of foods do you think would work well in reverse spherification?

Bibliography

To find out more about molecular gastronomy and reverse spherification, you can check
out these resources:

 Molecular Recipes Staff. (n.d.). Reverse Spherification. KQ2 Ventures, LLC. Retrieved
April 26, 2018.
 ChefSteps. (n.d.). Demonstration of Reverse Spherification. Retrieved October 2, 2014.
 Molecular Recipes Staff. (n.d.). Spherical Yogurt Recipe. KQ2 Ventures, LLC. Retrieved
October 2, 2014.

To find out more about chemical reactions, see these resources:

 Rader, A. (n.d.). Chemical Reactions. Rader's Chem4Kids.com. Retrieved October 2,

2014.
These specialty items can be purchased in a Spherification Kit from our partner Home
Science Tools. You will need these items from the kit:

 Sodium alginate (2.9 g)

 Note: The kit contains enough supplies to also do several other fun food science
projects. See the kit instructions page for details.

In addition, you will need to gather these items:

 Blender; it should ideally hold at least 3 C, but smaller blenders can also be used. If you
are using a smaller blender, you will also need a fork and a bowl or container that can
hold at least 3 C of liquid.
 Digital scale with 0.1 g increments. A digital scale that would be suitable is the Fast
Weigh MS-500-BLK Digital Pocket Scale, which is available from Amazon.com.
 Wax paper (1 sheet)
 Distilled water (3 C); available in your grocery store
 Liquid measuring cups
 Plastic wrap
 Refrigerator
 Plastic cups, 8 oz (4)
 Scissors
 Permanent marker
 Vegetable oil
 Paper towel
 Round measuring tablespoon
 Butter knife with one straight edge
 Spoons (at least 3)
 Yogurt (at least 4 tbsp.); the yogurt should have at least 20% DV (daily value) of calcium,
as shown on the nutritional label on the container. Only one type and container of yogurt
should be used in this science project.
 Optional: Camera
 Optional: Adult helper for using the blender
  Lab notebook

Disclaimer: Science Buddies participates in affiliate programs with Home Science

Tools, Amazon.com, Carolina Biological, and Jameco Electronics. Proceeds from the
affiliate programs help support Science Buddies, a 501(c)(3) public charity, and keep
our resources free for everyone. Our top priority is student learning. If you have any
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from recommendations on our site, please let us know. Write to us
at scibuddy@sciencebuddies.org.

Experimental Procedure
Download PDF of Procedure

Preparations

In this part of the science project, you will prepare your solutions and plan your
experiment. It might be helpful to watch the reverse spherification video for an
introduction and overview of this project.

1. Make the sodium alginate solution.

a. Note: You will need to use a blender that can hold at least 3 cups (C) or a smaller
blender that you can make multiple, smaller amounts of sodium alginate solution
in at a time (to add up to 3 C total).
b. Weigh out 2.9 grams (g) of sodium alginate.
i. To weigh out the sodium alginate, cut a small piece of clean wax paper
(around 8–10 centimeters [cm] on each side), place the wax paper on the
scale, zero out the scale (so that it reads "0 g"), and then weigh out the
chemical on the wax paper. Use a clean spoon to scoop the chemical out
of its container. Note: You should use wax paper because it is harder for
chemicals to stick to than normal paper.
ii. Tip: If the scale you are using does not have a feature to zero it out, you
will need to first weigh the piece of wax paper so that you can subtract
this mass from the total when you weigh the chemicals on it.
c. In the cup part of a blender, add 1/2 C distilled water.
d. Add a little bit of the 2.9 g of sodium alginate that you weighed out to the blender
cup, as shown in Figure 2.
 Figure 2. To the blender cup, add ½ C distilled water and a little sodium alginate.

e. Have an adult help you use the blender to blend the water and sodium alginate
together until the solution is completely smooth and well-blended, as shown in
Figure 3.
 Figure 3. Blend the sodium alginate with the water until they make a smooth
solution.

f. Repeat steps 1.c.–1.e. until you have added and blended a total of 3 C of distilled
water and the entire 2.9 g of sodium alginate together.
i. Adding a little bit of the sodium alginate at a time will ensure the solution
is well-mixed.
ii. If you are using a blender that cannot hold at least 3 C, pour the blended
solution into a clean bowl or container each time the blender cup is full.
When all 3 C of the sodium alginate solution has been added to the bowl,
mix it with a fork for several seconds.
2. Cover the sodium alginate solution (with a lid or a piece of plastic wrap) and place it in
the refrigerator. Let it sit in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours, but as long as overnight,
before testing it with the yogurt.
a. Letting the solution sit will allow the air bubbles to escape from it, making it ready
to use.
3. While the sodium alginate solution sits in the refrigerator, plan out what times you will be
weighing the yogurt in your experiment. You will be weighing the yogurt raviolis to see
how the reverse spherification reaction changes the yogurt raviolis over a period of 24
 hours, specifically to see if the raviolis change in mass. Examples are given in step 3.c.
Keep your schedule and the following tips in mind as you plan your time checkpoints:
a. You should let the yogurt sit in the sodium alginate solution for at least 24 hours
total.
b. You should use at least five time checkpoints.
i. One of these time checkpoints will be at the beginning of the experiment,
before you put the yogurt in the sodium alginate solution.
ii. Another time checkpoint will be at the end of the experiment, after 24
hours.
c. You will want to space out your time checkpoints by at least one hour, but keep
in mind that you will be unable to take measurements while you are asleep or
away from your experiment.
i. For example, if you started the experiment in the morning and were
around to take measurements all day and the next morning, you could do
measurements at 10:00AM, 1:00PM, 4:00PM, 7:00PM, and then
10:00AM the next morning. (These measurements would be after 0, 3, 6,
9, and 24 hours [hrs].)
ii. As another example, if you started the experiment in the late afternoon
and were around later that day and the next to take measurements, you
could do measurements at 5:00PM, 6:00PM, and 8:00PM, and then at
4:00PM and 5:00PM the next day. (These measurements would be after
0, 1, 3, 23, and 24 hrs.)
4. Now prepare the cups in which you will be testing the yogurt over time.
a. Take four 8 ounce (oz) plastic cups. Carefully use scissors to cut the tops off of
each cup so that they are only 6 centimeters (cm) tall. For an idea of how these
cups should now look, see Figure 4.
b. Use a permanent marker to label the little cups 1, 2, and 3. The fourth cup can be
unlabeled; you will be using it to practice making yogurt raviolis.

Testing Reverse Spherification with Yogurt

In this part of the science project, you will investigate how the reverse spherification
reaction changes the yogurt raviolis over time. To do this, you will put a spoonful of
yogurt in the sodium alginate solution and weight the yogurt at different times over 24
hours. Do you think the gel-like layer around the yogurt will get bigger, resulting in
heavier yogurt raviolis over time? It is time to find out!

1. Before starting your experiment, make a data table like Table 1, in your lab notebook.
You will record your data in this data table.

Mass Over Time (g)

ples 0 hrs 3 hrs 6 hrs 9 hrs 24 hrs

 Mass Over Time (g)

ples 0 hrs 3 hrs 6 hrs 9 hrs 24 hrs

Table 1. In your lab notebook, make a data table like this one in which to record the mass of
your yogurt samples over time (in grams [g]). Be sure to write down your exact time points (the
hours shown here are from the example given in step 3.c.).

2. When the sodium alginate solution has sat for at least 2 hours and you are ready to start
your experiment, use a clean liquid measuring cup to fill each of the cut-off plastic cups
(which you prepared in step 4 of the Preparations section) with 2/3 C of the sodium
alginate solution. This should fill the little cups almost full. Be sure to also fill the
unlabeled cup.
3. Take the unlabeled cup and practice adding yogurt to the sodium alginate solution as
described in step 4 (but you do not need to weigh your yogurt). It can take some practice
to get the hang of it. Once you think you have it, repeat step 4 to create your yogurt test
samples.
4. Now weigh and start testing your three yogurt samples.
a. Put a drop of vegetable oil on a paper towel and wipe the inside of the round
tablespoon measuring spoon with the oil on the towel. This will make it easier for
the yogurt to slide out of the spoon.
b. Place the round tablespoon measuring spoon on the scale and zero out the
scale.
i. Tip: If the scale you are using does not have a feature to zero it out,
weigh the spoon so that you can subtract this mass from the total mass of
the spoon and yogurt later.
c. Use the round tablespoon measuring spoon to scoop out a spoonful of yogurt.
Use the straight edge of a butter knife to make the top of the spoonful flat (this is
called making a level spoonful).
d. Place the spoon filled with yogurt back on to the scale. Record the mass of the
yogurt sample in your data table (under "0 hrs").
i. Your first yogurt sample will be sample 1.
 e. Carefully hold the spoon just above the surface of the sodium alginate solution in
the cup labeled "1." Slowly tilt the yogurt into the solution while using a second
spoon to help scoop all of the yogurt out of the measuring spoon in one smooth
motion (all at once), as shown in Figure 4. The yogurt should form a sphere-like
blob in the solution.

Figure 4. Holding the spoon with the yogurt just above the sodium alginate
solution's surface, carefully scoop the yogurt out (using a second spoon) so that
it stays together as one whole blob in the solution.

f. Clean out the measuring spoon and repeat steps 4.a.–4.e. two more times to
make a total of three samples. (The second sample will be sample 2 in the data
table and go in cup 2, and the third sample will be sample 3 and go in cup 3.)
5. Now it is time to take your first weight measurement. This will be the "0" hour time point.
Be sure to fill in your data table with your results. Do the following to weigh the yogurt
samples:
a. Put a piece of plastic wrap on top of the digital scale. (This will protect it from the
liquid sodium alginate solution.) Zero out the scale.
b. Use a spoon to carefully scoop out the yogurt "ravioli" from the sodium alginate
solution in the cup. Hold the ravioli against the side of the cup as you take it out,
letting extra solution go back into the cup. Be careful not to pop the ravioli! If you
do pop a ravioli, make a note of when it happened in your lab notebook and, if
you have time, repeat the Experimental Procedure to create and test additional
yogurt ravioli(s).
c. Carefully tilt the spoon so that the ravioli slides onto the plastic wrap on the digital
scale. Record the mass of the yogurt sample in your data table for the correct
time checkpoint.
d. Carefully lift the plastic wrap and slide the ravioli back into its cup.
e. Repeat steps 5.b.–5.d. for each yogurt sample.
 f. Put the yogurt samples in the refrigerator (in their cups) and leave them there.
Only take the samples out of the refrigerator to weigh them.
6. Continue to weigh the yogurt samples at the time checkpoints you decided on (in step 3
of the Preparations section). Be sure to fill in your data table with your results. Also, at
each time checkpoint, make observations of how the yogurt samples look. Do they
change over time? If so, what changes do you see? Be sure to record your observations
in your lab notebook.
a. If you have a camera, you may want to also take pictures of your samples over
time and/or at the end of your experiment. Later, you could print your pictures
and put them on your Science Fair Project Display Board.

Analyzing Your Data

In this part of the science project, you will analyze your data and draw conclusions
about how the yogurt raviolis changed over time as they were left in the sodium alginate
solution.

1. Calculate the average mass of your yogurt samples at each time checkpoint. Record
these numbers in your data table (in the "Average" row at the bottom).
a. For example, if at the 0 hrs time checkpoint one sample weighed 13.5 g, a
second sample weighed 14.2 g, and a third sample weighed 13.7 g, the average
mass at the 0 hrs time checkpoint would be 13.8 g (since 13.5 g + 14.2 g +
13.7 g = 41.4 g, and 41.4 g ÷ 3 = 13.8 g).
2. Make a line graph of your average mass data over time. Put the time (in hours) on the x-
axis (the horizontal axis going across) and put the average mass (in grams) on the y-
axis (the vertical axis going up and down).
a. You can make a graph by hand or make a graph using a computer program,
such as Create a Graph, and print it out.
3. Look at your data table, graph, and observations and try to draw conclusions from your
results.
a. How does the mass of the yogurt raviolis change over time?
b. How did spending more time in the sodium alginate solution affect the gel-like
layer that formed around the yogurt? Did it get bigger? Did it reach a maximum?
c. Can you explain your results in terms of the chemical reaction that is going on in
reverse spherification, which is explained in the Introduction in
the Background section? Did the chemical reaction stop quickly, or did it continue
working for a while?
d. Overall, is there a time checkpoint that looked like the "best," or most appealing,
yogurt raviolis and why? If you ended up with different types of raviolis (such as
with different types of gel-like layers), do you think some would be better in
certain food dishes than others?