How to Store Honey?

[itself]

I recently purchased a 32oz jar at Whole foods, in a glass jar. The honey crystallized. I store it in my pantry.

Can someone tell me why it crystallized and how I should store it?

[Blueberry]

Store at room temp. Honey naturally goes that. Warm the jar gently (as in, put it in a jar of gently simmering water) and it will go back to "normal." No harm done. Some honey forms crystals more quickly than others.

[Koronin]

Thanks, I've wondered about that myself.

[Tri Girl]

I've been wondering that, too.
I have local honey in plastic bottle that I bought at the farmer's market. Can I put that in warm water to get it back to a normal consistency, too? I threw out my old almost-empty bottle of honey because it was hard as a rock and I couldn't get it out (didn't think about putting it in warm water, tho).:rolleyes:

Thanks for the tips!

[malkin]

Honey and plastic in warm water is fine too. I'd caution against the microwave, because the honey could get unevenly hot and then deform the plastic.

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

All honey will crystallize- it's normal. Depending on the honey moisture content %, and the actual type of flower nectar it was made from, it will happen sooner or happen later.

You should not heat honey jars in simmering water or in a double boiler- that high a heat will destroy some of the wonderful micro nutrients and enzymes you want to retain.
Instead, simply put the closed jar of honey in a pot or bowl of very warm water from the tap and change the water a few times until the honey has become liquid again. Another way is to place the honey in your closed oven (oven NOT turned on of course) with the light bulb on for a day or so- if your oven has a light that can be left on with the door closed (my oven does, it has a window in the oven door and a separate light switch).
Honey will slowly re-liquify at about 90-110 degrees F. Never microwave honey to liquify it.
Just leave the closed jar in a bowl or pot of hot tap water and change the water a few times to keep it warm.
Once you've re-liquified the honey it should stay that way for a while. Hopefully you'll eat it soon anyway, since it's good for you!

No need to ever store honey in the fridge- real pure honey does not spoil. Besides, cold honey gets too thick to pour. Honey has been found intact and edible in the Egyptian tombs, several thousand years old!
I keep honeybees. :)

[bmccasland]

If you put your jar of honey in a pot of simmering water... um, make certain you check the water levels periodically, and add more water when the level gets too low. Not that I ever :rolleyes: did such a thing. ;)

A highly crystallized jar of honey will take a while to reliquify.

[Cataboo]

I'm lazy and do put honey in the microwave. Take off the lid and just put it in for 15-30 seconds. It's usually enough to liquefy enough on the top to use it for my cup of tea.

[OakLeaf]

I'll put a glass jar in the microwave sometimes. Zap for a few seconds, stir, repeat - helps liquefy it a little more evenly.

But even doing that, some of it will get pretty hot and destroy any enzymes, vitamins, etc. So mostly I'll use the crystallized honey as is, unless it's rock hard. Really, it's easier to use when it's a little bit crystallized - sticks better to the knife and whatever I'm spreading it on; comes out of a measuring cup easier if it's a recipe.

No use paying good money for raw honey if I'm going to be cooking it. :cool:

[MomOnBike]

Some bee keepers offer some expensive honey that they have seeded with special crystals to make a pre-crystalized honey. It's quite good.

My grandmother preferred the crystalized, or sugared, honey. I do to. It stays on the cracker better, not running off the sides.

As for melting the crystals, you can put the honey in the car on a sunny day. That always seems to work just fine with expensive pre-crystalized honey. :D

I also put the last of the honey jar on top of the pilot light on the stove top. It works just fine, though it takes a while.

[Bike Writer]

Honey is the only known foodstuff that has an indefinite shelf life, never spoils.

Food trivia update from a former restaurateur. Everyone else has given the best way to uncrystalize honey.

[GLC1968]

I just scoop it out crystalized (unless it's hard as a rock and that rarely happens). You can nuke it in a separate bowl if you need it liquid for a recipe or something, but for just eating, I agree with the others that it's delicious in crystaline form!

We have big 5 gallon buckets full of honey in our basement that we have to move to the warmest room in the house in order to pour it. Leaving it on the deck in the summer sun works great too. :)

[Pax]

... We have big 5 gallon buckets full of honey in our basement that we have to move to the warmest room in the house in order to pour it. Leaving it on the deck in the summer sun works great too. :)

Just curious, I love honey as much as the next gal but can't imagine what I'd do with 5 gallon buckets of the stuff! :p What do you do with all that honey?

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

When you keep bees it's not that unusual to have a 5 gallon bucket of honey. A strong healthy hive can give 30-80 lbs of honey or more in a year, over and above what they need to keep for the winter. I'm hoping to get me a nice load summer. :)
What do you do with it?- eat it, sell it, give it to your family and friends, holiday/birthday gifts....it doesn't ever go bad and you can just warm it gently to reliquify it if it crystallizes.

[Tri Girl]

That's a lotta honey! If I weren't allergic to bees (I carry an epi-pen at all times just in case), I would love to keep bees and get honey. I LOVE to eat honey. I'm sure the bees aren't mean and wouldn't sting me, but I just can't take that chance- although for sweet, sweet honey I would almost be willing...

[badger]

I recently bought raw creamed honey that was so hard to scoop out. So I've been putting it on top of the fridge. Still hard, but much softer.

I actually like it a bit on the harder side as I often scoop a tablespoon as a "snack" or pre-workout pick me up. Less messy.

[GLC1968]

Yep, what Lisa said. Not only do we have the big bucket-o-honey, but we have many frames that are full (and capped) that we removed last year that are in the freezer in case the bees need honey as winter winds down. Honestly, until we started keeping our own bees, I rarely ever used honey. Now I make a point of it (and sub it for sugar in many recipes)!

TriGirl - I was stung a lot as a kid (we had a bee colony in the walls of our house) but I haven't been stung yet since we started keeping them. The Italian breed of bees is very, very gentle.

Of course, almost all the beekeeping duties belong to my husband, so he's much more likely to be stung (and has just once, I believe).

We recently just purchased a new breed of bee that is supposed to be a bit hardier to our weather (short summer, long, wet winter) but they are also supposed to be a bit more agressive. I admit to leaving a wider birth as I walk past the hives this spring than I did in the past. :o

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

i get stung once or twice a month during Spring, Summer, and Fall!
I figure it's good for what ails me. :rolleyes:
My bees aren't particularly aggressive, but I get into the hives about once a week for one reason or another. This year i'll likely get more stings than last year, because I'll be raising some queens and splitting to get several new smaller hives.
most bees are pretty gentle in the Spring but get testier in Fall when they are defending their winter stores.