The Sugar Art Gel Colors are the ultimate food color choice for bakers looking to achieve vibrant, consistent and professional-quality colors in their cakes, cookies and baked goods! These highly concentrated gel food colors offer unparalleled intensity, allowing you to achieve true-to-life hues.
What is gel food coloring?
Gel food coloring is a concentrated liquid color used to tint icing, fondant, cookie dough, cake batter and macaron batter. It carries far more pigment than thin supermarket coloring in a thicker base, so it colors deeply without adding enough water to thin your icing. It is water based and will not color chocolate.
What is the difference between gel and liquid food coloring?
Both are liquid. The difference is concentration and viscosity, not state. Gel carries far more pigment in a thicker base, so a small amount reaches a deep shade without loosening your icing. Thin supermarket coloring is mostly water, so reaching the same depth means adding enough liquid to change the consistency.
Is gel food coloring oil based?
No. Gel food coloring is water based, which is why it will not color chocolate. For chocolate and cocoa butter you need a fat-soluble color: ChocElite is the oil-soluble line, and Master Elite White and Black are fat-soluble. Gel cannot be converted to oil based.
Can I use gel food coloring in place of regular food coloring?
Yes, and you will need less of it. Gel is far more concentrated than thin supermarket coloring, so start with a small amount and build until you reach the shade you want. Adding gel gradually also protects the consistency of royal icing and buttercream, which thin coloring can loosen.
Is gel food coloring stronger than liquid?
Yes, considerably. The rule of thumb is that gel colors are two to three times stronger than liquid colors, and in some cases significantly more than that. That is why gel tints icing deeply without thinning it, while liquid has to be added in volume and waters the icing down as it goes.
Does gel food coloring expire?
Yes. Gel food colorings expire, and the date depends on when the batch was produced. Typically the expiration is three to five years from the date of production. Every jar we make carries its own lot number and expiration date, so you can always check the bottle in front of you rather than guessing.
Is gel food coloring gluten free?
We do not use any gluten-containing ingredients in the gel line. That speaks to the formulation, not a certification. If you are baking for a medical restriction, contact us and we will tell you exactly what is in the bottle.
How do you get food coloring off skin?
Synthetic colors are pH sensitive, so acidity is what lifts them. Put a little vinegar or lemon juice on the stain and let it sit on the skin after you have already washed thoroughly. The pigment lightens as it reacts. Repeat rather than scrubbing, which irritates skin without removing more color.
Wondering why we moved on Red 3 before the deadline? Read Ed’s letter.
