Why your raw honey crystallised — and why that’s good
A short guide to the glucose, the temperature, and the science of crystals.
Written by
Dr. James Chen, food science
Open a six-month-old jar of raw leatherwood and you might find it cloudy, granular, even solid. This is not spoilage. This is your honey telling you it was never processed.
Honey is a supersaturated solution of glucose and fructose. Glucose is the one that wants to leave solution and form crystals — and below about 21°C, it does exactly that. The higher a honey’s glucose-to-water ratio, the faster it crystallises. Manuka, leatherwood, and most single-origin raw honeys crystallise in weeks. Generic blended supermarket honey doesn’t, because it has been heated and ultra-filtered until every glucose seed crystal is removed. That’s also why it tastes like nothing.
To return crystallised honey to liquid, stand the open jar in warm water (no hotter than 40°C — beyond that you destroy the enzymes that make raw honey raw). Stir gently. Or just eat it as is. Some of us prefer it that way.
About the author
Dr. James Chen, food science
Contributor
A storyteller from the family — sharing what we learn on the ridge, in the rainforest, and in the kitchen.
More from the journal
-
ScienceReading honey through a microscope
Pollen grains tell you where a hive worked. Here is what we found in this season's leatherwood.
Apr 24 Read -
ScienceWhat actually makes Tasmanian honey different
Isolation, climate, and the strangest temperate rainforest in the southern hemisphere.
Apr 14 Read -
ScienceHow we test every batch for purity
The seven things our labs check before a jar gets a label.
Apr 4 Read
Notes from the hive, in your inbox.
A monthly dispatch — what is in season, what we are learning, and the recipe we are eating this month.
One email a month. Unsubscribe anytime.