Why Does Honey Crystallise?

Why Does Honey Crystallise? 

Have you ever opened a jar of honey and wondered why it has suddenly turned thick and grainy?

We have.

For a long time, we thought honey was supposed to stay golden and runny. 

Then we started paying closer attention to different honeys and realised they don't all behave in the same way.

Some stay liquid for months. Others crystallise quite quickly.

So what is happening?

Honey is changing, not going bad

Honey contains natural sugars, mainly glucose and fructose, along with water and other naturally occurring compounds.

Glucose is less soluble in water than fructose. So when there is more glucose than the water can hold, the glucose begins to form tiny crystals.

As more crystals form, the honey becomes thicker. Eventually, it can become quite firm.

That's crystallisation.

It isn't a sign that the honey has spoiled. The honey hasn't gone bad. It has simply changed.

Crystallised honey is still honey.

Why does some honey crystallise faster?

This is where honey gets interesting.

Not all honeys have the same balance of sugars. The flowers the bees visit influence the composition of the honey, including the amount of glucose and fructose.

So the floral source matters.

Temperature matters too! 

Honey tends to crystallise more quickly at cooler temperatures, while warmer conditions slow the process.

The result is that two jars of honey can behave quite differently.

One might remain beautifully liquid. Another might become thick and creamy. A third might develop small, crunchy crystals.

None of these necessarily means something is wrong.

Does crystallisation mean the honey is raw or pure?

This is something we often hear.

The short answer is: not necessarily.

Crystallisation can happen naturally in raw honey, but it isn't a reliable test for whether honey is raw or pure.

Some raw honeys crystallise quickly. Others remain liquid for much longer.

The same goes for processed honey.

So we wouldn't use the texture of honey alone to tell us how it was produced. 

There are other things to look at. For example, where it came from, how it was handled, and what the label tells us.

Can you eat crystallised honey?

Yes!! 

There is no need to throw it away just because it has crystallised.

Some people actually prefer crystallised honey because it becomes thicker and easier to spread.

If you prefer your honey runny, you can gently warm the jar to soften the crystals.

Just keep the heat gentle. There is no need to cook the honey.

And if you are happy with the texture as it is, you can simply leave it alone.

So why does honey crystallise?

Because honey is a natural product, and natural products don't always behave exactly the same way.

The flowers the bees visit, the composition of the honey, the temperature and the way it is stored can all make a difference.

We think that's part of what makes honey interesting.

You open a jar expecting the same golden liquid every time.

Instead, sometimes it has changed.

And that's not a problem to fix.

It's simply one of the ways honey tells us that it is a natural product.