Honey is a product that is initially in a liquid state. So it is pumped out of the honeycomb. When stored in prepared containers, crystallization or sugaring occurs.
The speed of this natural process directly depends on the variety – some types of honey crystallize faster, others slower. Champion in liquid state of nectar obtained from white acacia. It retains its original consistency for up to six months. Can honey be heated after crystallization? Yes, but subject to the correct temperature conditions.
The content of the article
- 1 About crystallization
- 2 What is heat treatment for?
- 3 Heat resistance
- 4 Thermal industrial processing
- 5 How to warm up at home
- 5.1 About the microwave
- 6 Quick replies
About crystallization
Sugar, or scientifically crystallized, is a natural process. A thick honey product is not, by definition, a fake.
To read:
Crystallization (sugaring)
Determination of natural origin
On the contrary, the buyer should be alerted by the liquid state if honey was pumped out of the honeycomb several months ago… There are very few exceptions to this rule. For example, in the fall, you can purchase a liquid acacia variety. And that’s okay. But sunflower, when pumped out in the middle of summer, acquires a granular structure after 3-4 weeks.
Ideally, the buyer needs to know about the extraction time of a particular variety from the honeycomb, as well as about its main characteristics (color, smell, taste, crystallization rate).
Crystallization does not lead to a loss of medicinal qualities. And to achieve it to improve the appearance of the product, you can use the temperature regime. In the region of +14 degrees, sugaring occurs as quickly as possible. Below +10 and above +14, the formation of crystals is sharply slowed down.
What is heat treatment for?
You can warm honey for various reasons. It:
- use of a bee product for treatment (exact dosage in liquid form is required);
- fight against incipient fermentation – heat destroys microorganisms that cause the fermentation process;
- acceleration of cleaning in the process of pumping out and settling;
- purposeful preservation of the product in liquid form, for example, for sales.
That is, you need a good reason to heat-treat honey.
Heat resistance
The heat resistance of a natural honey product is low… It can only withstand short-term heating. Prolonged heating, especially at high temperatures, sharply reduces the nutritional and medicinal value.
Here are the consequences of incorrect (prolonged) heating, depending on the temperature used:
- from 40 to 60 – plant antibiotics (phytoncides) are destroyed;
- above 50 – aroma and bactericidal properties are lost;
- above 60 – the diastase number falls, the activity of invertase decreases (the enzymatic activity decreases);
- from 65 to 70 – vitamins are destroyed;
- at 80 – the composition of sugars changes;
- at 90 – the crystal structure is destroyed forever;
- at 95 – fructose is destroyed.
Incorrect heat treatment is the cause of the appearance of an unpleasant odor due to the destruction of protein components. As well as changes in the characteristic color – the product becomes very dark.
Thermal industrial processing
If heating is carried out for reasons of expediency, a special technological process is applied. More often with the use of special equipment, without which it is impossible to control the temperature and the time of its exposure to the product.
Pasteurization is characterized by rapid heating up to 70-73 degrees for 1-2 minutes, followed by sharp cooling to +25. It is impossible to provide such heat treatment at home..
How to warm up at home
You can warm up honey at home in two time-tested ways:
If it thickens due to the low temperature in the pantry, the container can be brought into the room and keep at room temperature for 1-2 days… The crystal structure will remain intact, but the bee product will become softer. Crystals melt at air temperatures above 40 degrees.
You can melt honey and using a water bath… For this, a large container is taken, into which water is poured and brought over low heat to + 45 … + 47 degrees. A container with a honey product is placed inside and kept in a water bath for several hours until the crystal lattice dissolves.
About the microwave
Can honey be melted in the microwave? This modern kitchen appliance can handle heating and cooking in minutes. But there is still an opinion that the microwave oven is capable of changing the structure of heated food and water. Chemists have long refuted this commonplace theory, proving that the power of a kitchen appliance is not enough to break chemical bonds.
However, in the case of honey, thermal problems can arise. The degree of heating depends on the power of the oven. With a power of 800-1 watts, heating to 000-degree temperature occurs in just a minute.
Will you be able to fully control the rapid heating process with microwaves? After all, honey is, first of all, a medicinal product. Whether it will help improve metabolic processes in the body directly depends on its quality. Will it be able to enrich it with microelements and biologically active substances. Will it remain active against pathogenic microorganisms.
Of course, honey is traditionally added to baked goods and many national dishes. It does not become poisonous from heating. But one cannot expect a therapeutic effect from such a food supplement either. The task for the chef is completely different – to serve a tasty dish on the table, and not to cure a restaurant visitor.
If we are talking about treatment, it is still not worth heating honey in the microwave.
Below are the power levels. A high level corresponds to 100 degrees per minute of heating. 40% approximately 40-45 degrees. But this indicator is approximate, there is no need to talk about accuracy here. Much depends on the amount of warmed-up food and dishes.
In short, the use of a microwave oven is entirely a risk zone when you need to melt candied honey.
Quick replies
To make it easier to navigate, here are short answers to the most common questions.
Can honey be reheated?
Yes. The easiest and safest ways are to use a water bath and hold at room temperature. With a microwave oven, reheating safety is more difficult to ensure.
Can honey be heated and to what temperature?
Heating is carried out up to 37-40 degrees to avoid the destruction of phytoncides, sugars, enzymes, and other biologically active substances.
Can honey be boiled?
You cannot boil (boil honey). Already at temperatures above 40 degrees, the destruction of valuable chemicals that make up it begins. And the breakdown of protein components leads to the appearance of an unpleasant odor. Such a medical product cannot be used for treatment.
Heat treatment requires maximum attention, since the popular bee product is extremely unstable when heated for a long time.
