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Learn how to make playdough with this homemade playdough recipe. Comprised of flour, salt, and other cabinet staples. this DIY playdough provides a fun activity for kids and adults alike. Tint your homemade playdough with rainbow colors for Pride month, or choose any other colors you’d like.
Why Should You Make This Homemade Playdough Recipe?
Making homemade playdough offers a fun and educational way for parents and children to collaborate in the kitchen.
Made from common ingredients such as flour, salt, water, and vegetable oil, homemade playdough contains none of the artificial additives and preservatives often found in commercial products. (Although this homemade playdough is not meant to be eaten, it’s certainly safe to do so!) Plus it costs a fraction of the store-bought stuff, so you can make much larger quantities, and let your imagination run wild.
This play dough recipe also allows plenty of room for customization. Choose your favorite colors (I went with rainbow for Pride month, but you can use any colors you’d like) or add a spoonful of edible glitter or foil stars for some extra sparkle.
DIY playdough provides a creative and affordable activity—and a unique sensory experience—for kids and adults alike. Just make sure an adult handles the “hot stove” portion of this recipe!
Ingredients for Making Homemade Play Dough
You can make DIY playdough with ingredients you already have in the kitchen cabinet! To prepare this homemade playdough recipe, begin by gathering the following:
- All purpose flour – Combined with water, flour clumps together to form the base for this homemade play dough. Use all purpose (or plain flour), rather than whole wheat.
- Table salt – Salt improves texture and acts as a preservative, helping your homemade dough to last for several months. (It also helps promote protein bonding—for a deep dive, check out this academic paper on the chemistry of play dough!) While I usually cook with kosher or sea salt, cheap “iodized salt” or “table salt” works perfectly for this recipe.
- Cream of tartar – Cream of tartar acts as a stabilizer in homemade play dough, improving texture and elasticity.
- Vegetable oil – Any type of vegetable oil, or an oil such as sunflower or canola, willl work in this recipe.
- Gel food coloring – My go-to is the Chefmaster brand. For this batch, I used the colors shown in the photo above: Christmas Red, Sunset Orange, Lemon Yellow, Leaf Green, Sky Blue, and Violet.
How to Make Playdough
To make your own play dough, you’ll start by whisking flour, salt, and cream of tartar in a large stock pot, along with warm water and vegetable oil. Then, you’ll cook the mixture over medium heat, watching it clump together and thicken as it cooks.
After cooking, tip the hot, clumpy mixture onto a silicone mat and allow it to sit until it’s cool enough to handle. Then, knead until smooth, work in a few drops of gel food coloring, and voila! Homemade play dough, ready to go in just under an hour.
Homemade Playdough Recipe Tips and Tricks
You don’t need many special tools to make this homemade playdough recipe, but I suggest having rubber gloves on hand—these keep your hands clean while kneading the color into the dough. You’ll also want to have a sturdy, heat resistant spoon and a heavy-bottomed stock pot at the ready. I also recommend a silicone rolling mat. I love using mine for recipes like this—it prevents the food coloring from staining the countertop, and makes for easy cleanup.
I’ve chosen rainbow colors, but you can select any color scheme you’d like. Try coordinating with holidays (red and green for Christmas; orange and black for Halloween) or sports teams. Or, create a custom birthday gift featuring the recipient’s favorite colors, along with a selection of playdough tools and cookie cutters.
This recipe yields six 220-gram (about 3-inch round) balls of homemade playdough. You can make larger balls of 2-3 colors, or one big batch in a single color. You can also double this recipe for a larger quantity.
Storing Homemade Playdough
To store, wrap each ball of homemade dough in clingfilm/plastic wrap, then place the balls in an airtight container or large ziploc storage bag.
You can store homemade playdough at room temperature for 2-3 months, or as long as it lasts!
Other kid-friendly recipes you might enjoy:
Homemade Animal Cookies
Rainbow Gummy Bears
Watermelon Lollipops
And if you do make these, or any of my recipes, don’t forget to tag me @bastecutfold or use the hashtag #bastecutfold on Instagram. I always love to see what you’re making!
Homemade Playdough Recipe
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 6 220-gram (3-inch) balls 1x
Description
A homemade playdough recipe! Learn how to make playdough with this easy playdough recipe, comprised of flour, salt, and other cabinet staples. Fun to customize in pretty rainbow colors, or any colors you’d like.
Ingredients
384 grams all purpose flour (3 cups)
325 grams table salt (1 cup)
20 grams cream of tartar (2 tablespoons)
675 milliliters lukewarm water (3 cups)
30 milliliters vegetable oil (3 tablespoons)
Gel food coloring (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple)
Instructions
Line the countertop with a silicone rolling mat or a large silicone baking mat.
In a heavy bottomed stock pot, whisk together the flour, salt, and cream of tartar.
Whisk in the water, followed by the vegetable oil. Continue whisking until the lumps dissolve, and a thick, smooth paste forms.
Cook over medium heat, stirring continually with a heat resistant spoon. Scrape the bottom of the pot periodically to prevent the mixture from sticking. You’ll notice clumps forming as you scrape.
Continue cooking until the mixture thickens, about 4-5 minutes. The playdough will look dry and pasty, kind of like thick mashed potatoes. You’ll also see it pull away from the sides of the pan.
Turn playdough out onto prepared mat. Allow to cool for 3 minutes, or until cool enough to handle.
With your hands, knead until the mixture becomes smooth and pliable.
Divide into 6 portions. Add a few drops of gel food coloring to each portion.
With gloved hands, work the food coloring into the dough.
Wrap each ball in clingfilm/plastic wrap. Place the balls in an airtight container or large ziploc storage bag.
Store homemade playdough at room temperature for 2-3 months, or as long as it lasts!
- Category: Miscellaneous
- Method: Stovetop