a Step by step guide

How to Make Naturally Colored Flour for Bread Art

One of the top questions I get asked after posting my artistic bakes on social media is: “How do you get those beautiful colors on top?” Today, I’m sharing my process for creating naturally colored flour powders so you can add your own artistic touch to bread at home.

Some shades, like black and white, are super easy—they only need one ingredient. Others, like yellow, pink, and orange, require a little blending magic. Many of my colors start with Thai rice flour blended with wet plant-based colors in a mini bullet blender. I experiment with different brands and techniques to get the perfect shade for each bake.

Below, I’ll walk you through my step-by-step process and share links to all my favorite products and how I use them.

naturally colored pink flour
purple and pink colored flour

The Basics

Let's make natural pink colored flour

Blending Process For Naturally Colored Flour

  • Add your base flour: Pour 60 grams of Thai rice flour into a bullet blender.
  • Create a well: Use the skinny end of a spoon to make a little well or hole in the center of the flour.
  • Add liquid color: Pour half the amount of the liquid color you plan to use into the hole and shake the blender bottle a little before blending so the wet color is sealed in.
  • Blend: Blend for 1 minute, turning the bottle as you go to evenly distribute the color.
  • Add remaining color: Make another well, pour in the rest of the liquid color, and blend again.
  • Store: Transfer your colored flour to an airtight jar. I try to use mine within 3 months, though it can last longer.

Watch the video & Use this process whenever blending is required for the recipes below!

Naturally Colored Flour Recipes

black flour

Black

Ingredient: Black cocoa powder

Method: use as-is.

white flour

White

Ingredient: Thai rice flour

Method:use as-is.

red flour

Deep Red

Ingredient: Red Yeast Rice Powder or Hibiscus Powder

Method:use as-is.

Pink

Ingredients: 60g Thai rice flour + ½ bottle Watkins Red (plant-based)

Method: Follow the steps above using the bullet blender.

Purple

Ingredients: 2 parts purple sweet potato powder + 1 part Thai rice flour

Method: Add to a container and shake until blended.

orange flour

Vibrant Orange

Ingredients: 2 parts turmeric + 1 part Thai rice flour

Method: Add to a container and shake until blended.

pastel orange flour

Pastel Orange

Ingredients: 60g Thai rice flour + Supernatural Orange (liquefied with a bit of water)

Method: Follow the steps above using the bullet blender.

pastel yellow sourdough flour

Pastel Yellow

Ingredients: 60g Thai rice flour + ½ bottle Watkins Yellow (plant-based)

Method: Follow the steps above using the bullet blender.

pastel green sourdough flour

Pastel Green

Ingredients: 30g Thai rice flour + 1 dropper full of chlorophyll drops

Method: Follow the steps above using the bullet blender.

Blue angel wing sourdough

Blue

Ingredients: 20g Thai rice flour + 1 packet of Color Kitchen Blue

Method: Add to a container and shake until blended.

Yellow sourdough flower

Vibrant Yellow

Ingredients: 30g Thai rice flour + 1 packet of Color Kitchen Yellow (liquefied with a bit of water)

Method: Follow the steps above using the bullet blender.

Deep green sourdough clover loaf

Deep Green

Ingredients: 30g Thai rice flour + 4 droppers full of chlorophyll drops

Method: Follow the steps above using the bullet blender.

A note on natural colors: Most natural colors will lighten to a degree during baking. You can apply more after baking for vibrant details.
Green naturally colored sourdough

Want More Vibrancy?

Try painting your bread!

Step 1: Once the loaf is fully cooled, brush off any flour where you’ll paint- this helps the color stick and prevents cracking.

step 2: Mix your plant-based color with a drop of liquid white to make it pop. Add a little water if it’s too thick.

Step 3: Use slow, light strokes- less is more, as the color can bleed slightly.

Step 4: Let each layer dry before adding more for extra depth.