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My grandma always made playdough when I visited her house. Here is a recipe I enjoyed making for my daughters–and now my grandchildren!
The recipe my grandma used relied heavily on salt. This one actually came from a babysitter I hired many moons ago. We’ve enjoyed it ever since. It can easily be halved if you don’t want 4 large balls of playdough.
But if you happen to be making playdough for a host of grandchildren, this recipe works well for sharing. Make it all in the same color, or divide the dough into however many colors you desire. It’s totally up to you!
Be sure to add a little peppermint flavoring, which makes the dough smell wonderful when playing with. To store, simply place the dough in a covered container or bag. Store at room temperature or in the refrigerator for up to a month. (I’ve actually stored it longer, but that’s just between you and me!)
Ingredients for Easy Homemade Playdough
(See the full recipe at the bottom of this post.)
Instructions for Making This Recipe
Gather your ingredients so that you have everything close at hand on the counter or table.
In a large saucepan, boil water and add oil. You may also add food coloring at this time if you only desire one color.
Remove from heat and add the peppermint flavoring for scent. Stir in the all-purpose flour, salt, and alum. Mix well, using a long-handled wooden spoon.
Alum is a preservative often used in pickling. When used for making playdough, it tends to create a very soft, long-lasting dough. You can find alum in your grocers baking isle with the spices.
Coloring the Dough
When the dough is cool enough to work with, you may divide the dough into separate bowls. One for each color.
The color works into the dough best when the dough is still warm, but that’s also harder for little hands. When my grandchildren are helping me, I start the dough coloring and hand the dough to them when it cools enough for their comfort.
Work each color in by kneading the dough with your hands. (You may want to use plastic gloves to protect your hands from food coloring.)
Get Ready, Get Set, Play!
Start playing with the dough immediately to build your own creations. You’re only limited by your imagination! See the playdough pizza above that I made with our granddaughter!
When you’re done playing, store the homemade playdough in a covered container and refrigerate. This playdough recipe will stay fresh in the refrigerator for several months. Makes 4 large balls of playdough.
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Easy Homemade Playdough
(As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.)
Ingredients
- 3 cups water
- 6 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1-2 drops peppermint flavoring (for a delightful scent)
- 5 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup salt
- 2 tablespoons alum
- food coloring of your choice
Instructions
- Gather your ingredients so that you have everything close at hand on the counter or table.
- In a large saucepan, boil water and add oil. You may also add food coloring at this time if you only desire one color.
- Remove from heat and add the peppermint flavoring for scent. Stir in the all-purpose flour, salt, and alum. Mix well, using a long-handled wooden spoon.
- When the dough is cool enough to work with, you may divide the dough into separate bowls. One for each color.
- Work each color in by kneading the dough with your hands. (You may want to use plastic gloves to protect your hands from food coloring.)
- Place in covered container and refrigerate. This playdough recipe will stay fresh in the refrigerator for several months. Makes 4 large of playdough.
Fun, great for when the neighbor kids come over to play with my bigger kids.
Kids love this stuff, plus it makes enough for a handful of kids to play with!
Oh, my, how this homemade playdough brings back memories. Yes, my grandma made this, then I made this for my girls too. A fun and easy recipe.
Grandma’s are the best, aren’t they! I hope you’ll have a chance to make some of this for your grandchildren!
My boys loved playdough when they were young but I don’t know why I never thought to make some myself. Particularly because we had an ‘art room’ where they could paint and be creative. We did things with papier-mâché and even collected clay on the beach and made stuff with that too!
Oh, an art room would have been the perfect place to create all kinds of wonderful playdough things! Papier-mache is pretty cool, too!
My kids also love to play with Lego. The elder brother makes the colourful playdough and the younger sister keeps plyiing with them They are a blessing for my kids in this lockdown
Yes, it is good to have plenty of activities for young children!
I’ve been thinking about making playdough for my grandson, Thanks for the tips about using the alum to improve the texture of the dough and about adding the color to it while warm.
Hi Beth! I hope your grandson will enjoy the playdough!
This recipe looks so fun and great for kiddos!
Thanks for stopping by! Enjoy!
My kids would go gaga over this I’m sure. My daughter always wanted to make playdough at home. I will share your recipe with her. Thank you.
Our grandkids played with it this weekend and had such fun building things. I hope your daughter will enjoy making it!