Kitchen Chemistry - Hokey Pokey

The last task of the day was for each group to make hokey pokey.
We began by heating 2 Tablespoons of golden syrup and 5 Tablespoons of sugar in a pot.

The next step was to add 1 teaspoon of baking soda to our syrupy mixture.

Then we had to stir it really quickly.
The mixture fluffed up to a thick golden mixture which we quickly spooned onto pre-sprayed trays. It set really quickly so we had to be fast.
set in big dollops of rich golden toffee, and it looked and smelled delicious.

Everyone got to take part and have a taste, and it was so much fun!!!

Some groups even got to make 2 batches as they had either burnt or not dissolved the sugar properly the first time. A great learning experience for all.

Barbara's group of Elliot, Izack and Adam had the greatest success with their hokey pokey, which when broken apart had large craters (holes) to show where the carbon dioxide was. Check it out!

The science behind Hokey Pokey:
When the golden syrup and sugar are heated it causes a reaction with the baking soda which creates carbon dioxide. The carbon dioxide is trapped in the heavier syrupy mixture which causes it to fluff up into the thick golden mixture. As it cools it sets into a firm solid.


Time to enjoy..... Mmmmmm.......