WHAT ARE EMULSIFIERS?
A lesson on emulsifiers ... PLUS a tasty gin recipe
I often get asked about emulsifiers. What are they? What do they actually do? So, I'm going to answer this question as simply as possible by using a gin analogy. Here goes ...
Remember teenagehood? Ah, the Good old Days, when there were strict social groups - and certain groups could never mix with other groups. After all, you not only had nothing in common. It was like you were oil and they were water. Years later, you find yourself at a party and you have a Gin or two and you find yourself chatting to someone whom you would have never spoken to in High School, ever! AND you are getting on like a house on fire. You may still be different but now you are happy to mix and now you meet regularly for pilates and a smoothie.
SO what does this have to do with emulsifiers ? Most skincare products are made of oils and water-based ingredients mixed together to form an emulsion. As everyone knows, oil and water are really from different cliques & will actually do all in their power to get as far away as possible from each other.
So an emulsifier does for oil and water mixtures, what Gin (& a little maturity) can do for those ancient social cliques. Each allows the different groups to mix and form stable systems. Any product which includes oils and any water-based ingredients has emulsifiers in it or it will simply separate.
As I have been talking about Gin, here's my very favourite Gin cocktail.
The GIN-GIN - an australian herbal, sweet refresher
Mix Bundaberg Ginger Beer, with your favourite Australian Gin to taste, adding a squeeze of fresh lime juice. Top with discs of fresh mini-cucumber. Drink and enjoy!