Honey why does it crystallize

You can easily de-crystallize honey on a stovetop using the following steps:. Our most important advice: never use a microwave to de-crystallize honey! Avoid putting your precious honey in a microwave. Microwaves are notorious for uneven heating and offer little control over how hot your honey will get. Protect your honey from scorching and caramelization by resisting the temptation for a quick solution. Skip the microwave altogether and give your jar of honey a comfortable hot water bath.

Jim Wellman is an amateur beekeeper with hours of videos up on his YouTube channel. Expert beekeeper Ward Hicks, owner of Hicks Honey located in Rexburg, Idaho, told us a little about the importance of temperature control:.

I have learned that a slow warming process, not to exceed degrees Fahrenheit, is best. Whether your honey is stored in a plastic bottle, a glass jar, a bear, or a large plastic container, crystallization is bound to occur over time. Here are some simple things you can do to minimize the crystallization process and optimize the lifespan of raw honey. We know that working with raw honey is effectively a matter of maintaining the proper viscosity, but heating honey through traditional methods poses some common problems: you could cook out the enzymes and antioxidants that make it so good for us, you can end up burning it, or the thick viscous honey could get the best of you and your operation.

The difference? The Powerblanket heating solution maintains the same temperature as a beehive. We can give you complete control over the de-crystallization process, solve your viscosity problems, and protect your liquid gold. I am lucky to have a good source of information — the beekeepers in the area, so I spoke with people who know and also referenced Google.

I found a great bunch of articles online; one in particular that I felt gave a concise summary of why and how crystallization happens. From that, I gleaned the most important points for people to understand; I thought this was good information to share. Raw honey can become cloudy … it is not going bad. Honey is what scientists call a supersaturated solution; it's essentially sugars and water and there's simply not enough water in honey to keep all of its sugars dissolved permanently.

Honey contains two main types of natural sugars, fructose and glucose. While fructose tends to remain dissolved, glucose has a much lower solubility and so can crystalize much more easily. Tiny crystals form in the honey when the glucose separates from the water. The crystallization will even be different in different kinds of honey depending on the nectar it was made from.

Some form tiny, very fine crystals evenly dispersed through the honey. Others have larger gritty crystals. It totally depends on the water content of the honey compared the glucose, the more glucose, the quicker it will crystallise. Raw honey also contains small particles of pollen, beeswax, bee glue and other nutrients.

That's not a bad thing and they are largely responsible for raw honey's extra health benefits. But those tiny bits and pieces are perfect for the glucose to crystallise on as it becomes undissolved in the honey solution. Those little particles are the reason that raw honey is more likely encourage the formation of crystals over a pasteurised and fully processed product. Where you store honey can make a big difference in how quickly it will crystallise.

Low temperatures will encourage quicker crystallisation, so don't put our honey it in the fridge! There's really no need to keep honey refrigerated, stored properly in a sealed container honey has a shelf life that is well beyond anything else in your cupboard.

Hot temperatures can cause honey to degrade though, so warmer is definitely not better. Some types of honey crystallizes more quickly than others, depending on the natural flower sugars it contains.

Flower nectars vary in the amount of glucose and fructose they contain, and as a result honey made from different nectars will crystallize at different speeds. In general, honey varieties with higher glucose content such as fall wildflower or goldenrod honey will crystallize more quickly than honeys with higher fructose content like linden honey or acacia honey. Some years, depending on the harvest, wildflower honey will crystallize quickly and other years more slowly.

In dry summers, wildflower honey will contain proportionally more clover and goldenrod nectar than during warm wet summers, when we often have more linden nectar in wildflower honey. The texture of crystallized honey also varies. Certain honey will crystallize with a very smooth crystal, that makes it a creamy delight. Other times, crystallized honey may have a grainier texture with sharper crystals. We recommend storing honey in your pantry at room temperature, or slightly above.