At some point, someone decided it'd be a good idea to make rainbow food and call it "unicorn." And they were right. It was an excellent idea. Because now, we not only have rainbow grilled cheese, blue lattes, and cupcakes with unicorn horns but also can enjoy noodles that change colors when you flavor them.
Let us explain. An Instagram post by @the_sunkissed_kitchen alerted Pop Sugar to the existence of unicorn noodles, which appear to be invented by the blog The Indigo Kitchen.
To create them, you boil purple cabbage for five minutes, turn off the heat, and add clear or white glass noodles to the pot. Use just enough water to soak the noodles if you want a dark blue, or make it wetter if you prefer more of a sky blue. You can also manipulate the color with the timing: Soak for five minutes for a light blue and 1o for dark.
AdvertisementADVERTISEMENT
Then, put them in a bowl and get ready for the fun part. All you have to do is squeeze a lemon or lime over the dish, and that portion of the noodles will become pink and purple.
This works because of the anthocyanin in the cabbage, which changes colors when you mix it with acidic things like citrus fruits, because science! Conversely, you can add an alkaline substance like baking soda to something purple to make it blue or green. Yes, The Indigo Kitchen has tried this too — and created this amazing unicorn sushi.
@the_sunkissed_kitchen and @theindigokitchen have two different but equally beautiful takes on the unicorn noodle recipe. The former's is all decked out in stars and flower petals.
In the original dish, the glowing noodles stand in stark contrast to the green vegetables surrounding them. The Indigo Kitchen writes that they were delicious, and we have no trouble believing that.