Spherification is the culinary process of shaping a liquid into spheres which visually and texturally resemble roe. The technique was originally discovered by Unilever in the 1950s (Potter 2010, p. 305) and brought to the modernist cuisine by the creative team at elBulli under the direction of executive chef Ferran Adrià.
There are two main methods for creating such spheres, which differ based on the calcium content of the liquid product to be spherified.
For flavored liquids (such as fruit juices) containing no calcium, the liquid is thoroughly mixed with a small quantity of powdered sodium alginate, then dripped into a bowl filled with a cold solution of calcium chloride, or other soluble calcium salt.
Just as a teaspoonful of water dropped into a bowl of vegetable oil forms a little bubble of water in the oil, each dro