Homemade Playdough Recipes

Homemade playdough is so easy to make and it’s so much better than store bought. DIY playdough recipes only take 5 minutes to make with a few ingredients you probably have at home. Make your recipe suit your kids likes and they’ll be entertained for hours!

Homemade Playdough

I remember wanting playdough in our house as a kid. It’s such a therapeutic tool for kids, and has so many applications. I remember seeing all those playdough toys you could use. Rolling the dough, cutting the dough, making things. Getting the colors all mixed together. 

But playdough doesn’t have to be expensive. You don’t need to get all those fancy things to make playing with playdough fun. It’s just as fun and is super easy to make. And, the best part is that you want make it anytime you need it! 

Kids stuck at home and bored? Make some playdough. 

Homemade Playdough Ingredients

While there are different versions of playdough recipes, we’ve found that most recipes contain the following”

flour – all-purpose flour

water – just regular tap water

cream of tartar – just a tablespoon

salt – 1/2 cup 

vegetable oil – just a tablespoon, you can substitute coconut oil (this probably makes the playdough smell great)

food coloring – use gel food coloring to get the best colors

How to Make Homemade Playdough

• Most recipes have you mix all of the dry ingredients (flour, salt, and cream of tartar) and mix together. 
• On the stovetop, mix the water and vegetable oil. Mix to combine. 
• Add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix until combined. 
• Cook on medium heat and stir together. Continue stirring over the heat until the dough starts to thicken. It will begin to turn into a ball as you continue stirring.
• Take off heat and let cool. 
• Once it’s cool, knead the dough for 5 minutes until it’s combined and soft. 

Adding color:

Recipes vary here, but you can add the food coloring to the water and vegetable oil, or wait until the end and add the drops of coloring to the cooled dough, and knead into the dough. 

It might be easier if you’re only using one color to add it during the water/oil stage. This will give the color a greater spread. 

If, however, you want to make multiple colors from one batch, cook the playdough, then separate and add the colors as you knead the playdough. 

Do You Need to Use Cream of Tartar in Playdough Recipe?

You do need to use cream of tartar in a playdough recipe. This is what makes the dough soft. If you leave it out, you’ll still get playdough, but it might be dry and not smooth.

How to Get Bright Playdough Colors

In order to get the bright playdough colors that you might be seeking, you should use gel food coloring. Your typical baking food coloring just isn’t going to penetrate the dough and will fade as you mix it. 

This is similar to what happens with baking. I always use gel food colorings in my cakes and frostings. The colors are bright and vibrant. 

How to Keep Playdough Soft

The first step to keeping your diy playdough soft is to keep it in an airtight container. This is just like regular playdough. If you leave it out, the air will dry it out. 

A secondary measure you can do, it wrap it in plastic wrap, then put it in an airtight container. The plastic wrap will add a layer of protection against it drying out. 

Homemade Playdough Recipes

Homemade playdough is so easy to make and there’s a lot of room to be creative with your recipe. You can add coloring, scents, and even other ingredients! We’ve compiled a list of 15 of the best playdough recipes. 

[mv_create title=”Colorful DIY Playdough Recipes” key=”12″ thumbnail=”https://balancingmotherhood.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Hidden-Treasure-Playdough-fb.jpg” type=”list” layout=”hero”]