How It's Made - Replica Foods

This meal may look delicious, But it actually tastes like plastic. This is fake food. It's not for tasting -- it's for tempting. Restaurants and food stores Use these imitations to entice customers. Fake food is also used as props in movies and tv Because the camera loves it. This fake food will keep that fresh-cooked look forever. That means there will be no waste From the restaurant display case. These authentic-looking fakes start out with the real thing.
In this case, it's a sea bass. The worker blots up excess oil from the skin. He then uses an adhesive to glue the fish To the base of a wooden box. Next, he immerses the fish in liquid silicone. 24 hours later, after the silicone is set, He breaks open the box and removes the fish.

This detailed silicone negative Can now be used to mold exact replicas of the original fish. They preheat the mold until it's warm to the touch. This kick-starts the curing of this liquid plastic, Which they pour into the mold. Once the mold is filled, They zap it in a microwave oven for 45 seconds. It solidifies the plastic significantly, But it still needs a bit more curing, So the worker transfers it to a conveyor. It carries the mold under a lamp, Whose intense energy completes the curing of the plastic. The worker now extracts the mold and plastic replica. Spillover from the molding has created a few ragged edges, So he trims them with a pair of scissors... ...Then grinds the edges to smooth away the rest. He also uses the grinder to do some contouring.

Now for the real artistry. The worker sprays silvery paint onto the plastic bass. It gives the fish scales a lifelike, luminous texture. A bit of dark-gray paint Brings out the silvery undercoat. Brown paint on the tail and fins make them look more realistic. Using an artist's brush, he paints the eyes. He brushes on fine lines that look like natural creases And adds some other typical sea-bass markings. A coat of lacquer keeps the paint from chipping And makes the sea bass look moist. Now the sea bass Will always look like the catch of the day. And unlike a real fish, it won't start to decompose. At this faux-food factory, there are 3,500 molds. Each one can be used hundreds of times And will produce an exact copy of the original every time.

For things like meat and potatoes, They add color to the liquid plastic Before they do the molding. This reduces the amount of painting They'll need to do later. It takes some trial and error to get the pigments just right, But when they do, this fake meal looks good enough to eat. They drizzle the beef and side dishes with gravy-colored glue That makes the fake food adhere to the plate. Now that they've pulled this meal together, It should never come  apart. It takes a couple of days to produce all these dishes, But it should be worth it because, compared to real food, It will last forever.

How It's Made: Seasons 1 & 2 (2010)

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