How To: Make Pop Rocks

Do you remember eating Pop Rocks as a kid? I do. It was like a chemistry experiment exploding in my mouth every time I ate them. I thought that eating Pop Rocks was just one of those things from the ’80s that parents let us do, like riding in the car without a seat belt. You know, one of those things that parents these days would never allow.

However, apparently I’m wrong, and there is still some demand for those flavored balls of science. I haven’t seen them in years, but I found a link on Pop Rocks Candy where we can order them online. I even found a link with directions for mixing Pop Rocks with vodka, rum and even Strawberry Schnapps to make Strawberry Popper Rockers, Pop Rocks on the Beach and an Exploding Strawberry Daiquiri. You can check out those drink recipes here. Hmm… Those could get interesting.

Have you ever wondered how Pop Rocks work? According to About, “Pop Rocks have been gasified with carbon dioxide using this patented process. When you put Pop Rocks in your mouth, your saliva dissolves the candy, allowing the pressurized carbon dioxide to escape. It’s the popping of the pressurized bubbles that makes the sizzling sound and shoots pieces of candy around in your mouth.” Sounds tasty, doesn’t it? Remember that story about the kid who ate a bunch of Pop Rocks and then drank a 6-pack of Pepsi? Everyone said he died because the Pepsi and Pop Rocks mixed in his stomach and it exploded. Yeah, well, that story is false. Check it out on Snopes.

Apparently Instructables member chickflix couldn’t find Pop Rocks in her local store, so she posted a tutorial for how to make these homemade chunks of awesomeness. Aside from the 1/4 cup of Citric Acid Crystals, all the ingredients look pretty basic. I don’t know if I would make these to eat, but I can think of plenty of pranks that would be fun to play with these little badboys. You can go to Pop Rocks to get the exact recipe. Have fun!

Via: [MAKE] [Nuclear Toast]