OVEN HOT PROCESS (version 2)
Castille Soap © 2001 Debbie Devney
For a pictorial process of
Debbie's directions, click here
Oven hot process is a fun, easy way to make soap.
It goes faster than direct heat, and I find it more predictable
than with a crock pot. Unlike cold process, you can make it this
morning, and use it tonight, if you like.
For this particular project, I chose a plain Castille soap.
This is the first recipe on the first page of the recipe nook at
the Soapnuts site. It's a very simple recipe that provides a
good, basic bar of soap.
First bring out what you need: Your oil and lye, a
measuring cup for the water (water was the standard used--14
ounces of water in the measuring cup weighs 14 weight ounces), a
kitchen scale, spoon, stick blender, rubber scraper, rubber
gloves, goggles, and a pot. The pot should be enamel or stainless
steel, and large enough so your recipe doesn¹t fill it more
than 1/3 to 1/2. A lid is useful, to help prevent
boilovers.You¹ll also need a mold. Metal can be used for hot
process, as there isn¹t any active lye to speak of in the
finished product. Avoid plastic--your cooked soap will be in the
neighborhood of 200*F when you put it in the mold. I use a muffin
tin for hot process, and spray it with a food release like Pam.
Have a container to mix the lye and water, an oven, of course,
and I like to keep a bowl of vinegar at the ready, to neutralize
the lye in case of any accidents.
You¹ll want to wear loose, probably ugly clothes you
don¹t mind messing up. Any time you handle lye, whether
measuring or mixing with oil, wear your gloves and goggles.
There¹s no need to fear lye, but do be aware of what it can
do, and that it¹s often in granular form. That means
it¹s like sand, and can get everywhere. Even one little
grain can cause quite a bit of discomfort.
Here's the recipe:
40 oz olive oil
5.0 oz sodium hydroxide (lye--I buy Red Devil brand at the
grocery store)
14 oz water, I use distilled
Measure out your water and put it into a container to mix
in. I use an old
spaghetti sauce jar. Measure your lye by weight on the
kitchen scale. I use
a paper cup to measure it in. Place the cup on the scale
and zero it out,
then pour your lye into the cup. Take lye and water, a
spoon, and a lid for
your mixing container outside, or someplace with good
ventilation. Slowly
add the lye to the water (³snow falls on the
lake² is how I remember it),
stirring the whole time. Keep your face away from the
mix, it¹s got nasty
fumes. When the lye/water mix has cleared, cap it for
safe transport, and
take it back to your work area. Uncap and put it in a
place where it won¹t
get knocked over.
Now measure out your oils. It doesn¹t work on my
kitchen scale to set the
pan on it and zero it out, so I use a paper cup, usually
the one I measured
the lye in. In this particular instance, I weighed one
pound twice, the
third time measuring out half a pound into the cup,
dumping the oil into the
pan as I measured each time.
The person who taught me oven hot process didn¹t
wait for everything to
cool, and I don¹t, either. I measure the oil, put
gloves and goggles back
on, and slowly pour the lye/water mix into the oils. I do
this on the stove
because lye can really mess up a formica table. Turn on
the oven to 225*F. I
stir for about 10 minutes, then start alternating the
spoon with the stick
blender. I use the stick blender for a count of 10, then
stir for a few
minutes, then back and forth, like that, until I¹ve
got trace. Trace is when
the spoon is lifted, the drippings stay on the surface
for a second or two
before ³melting² back into the mix.
Know your oven. It helps immensely to know if it really
does reach
temperature. You can get an oven thermometer at the
grocery store.
Now put a lid on the pan, and put the pan into the oven.
Check your project
every 10 minutes.
The first thing you¹ll notice is that it thickens.
It can get pretty thick,
like egg custard. Then it will start to separate,
resembling applesauce.
Some say to stir, some say don¹t. I run the spoon
around the pan every time
I check it to make sure the temperature is even
throughout. When it becomes
translucent, and about the consistency of mashed
potatoes, try the lather
test. Stir your pot a little, then take a very small
amount of the cooked
soap on your rubber glove. It¹s hot, so you only
want a little. Add some
water and rub yours hands together as if washing them.
Does the soap lather,
as opposed to just move around and turn white? If it
lathers, that is, gets
bubbles in it, then this is the moment of truth. Put the
tip of your tongue
into it. It¹s okay if it tastes awful, it is soap.
If it stings, the pot
goes back in the oven for another 10 minutes. If it
doesn¹t sting, you have
soap. Take the pot out of the oven, and add your clays,
fragrances,
scrubbies, whatever. Stir in well.
When I remove the pot from the oven, I put my muffin tin
in. This warms it
somewhat, keeping the last of the soap from being too
hard when I finally
put it in the pan. The soap hits the tin, and melts
again. After you stir
your goodies in, put the pot back in the oven with the
door closed for just
a minute or two, then open the oven door. I do all this
with the tin and the
pot on the rack, and plop a large spoonful into each cup.
Whatever is left
over goes into a small bread tin.
Drop your mold on the table, as if breaking the air
bubbles in a cake. The
object here is to pack the soap into the mold, and to
smooth the top some.
When my pot is empty, I take my mold and put it in my
soap drying room.
There, I put it out of harm¹s way, and insulate it.
The theory here is that
it goes back into gel stage, and will be smoother
(prettier) than if you
just plopped it into the mold and dropped it on the
table.
I leave it insulated in the mold until it¹s cool, or
overnight. When the
soap is cool enough, I take it out of the mold, and let
it air dry for a
week. I have used it the same day, but I find that it
does change a bit if I
let it set for a little bit.
Voila! You have soap!
For a pictorial process of
Debbie's directions, click here
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