Buying real honey becomes more and more difficult, because even beekeepers in small apiaries mix real honey with artificial. When we are not sure what source the honey we buy comes from, the ability to check its quality can be very useful.

You wanted to buyreal honeyand you failed again? Honeycombs and smiling bees on the labels of the jars do not mean that there is even a hint ofreal honey in the product in front of us .

Real honey - what does it contain?

Due to its healing properties, honey is widely used for a reason. Carbohydrates, organic acids, essential oils derived from nectar, polyphenolic compounds, proteins, vitamins A, B1, B2, B6, B12, C, folic acid - in honey there are about 300 substances that have a beneficial effect on the human body. Honey was named as liquid gold not only because of its color, but mainly because of its preventive and healing properties.

Real honey - the taste of sweetness and a slight scratching in the throat

Much depends on its taste. Beekeepers and honey connoisseurs are able to determine its age, the way in which it has been stored by trying a delicacy produced by bees, and the taste of additional substances that should not be found in real honey. Honey without additives is very sweet at first. After a while, natural aromas are released, which identify what the honey is made of.

There should be a slight burning sensation in the mouth, and a scratching sensation in the throat (most clearly felt in buckwheat honey). If honey is devoid of this aftertaste, it is certainly an artificial product made of water and sugar.

Bee Bee - what is it?

Real honey - tests for the authenticity of honey

1. Drip test.Take honey into a teaspoon and pour it over the plate with a steady stream. If it drips evenly, without tearing and forming a cone on the plate, it is natural honey. The texture of the artificial honey will be uniform, without any lumps, and the honey will spread over the plate.

2. Dissolution test.Pour a teaspoon of honey into a glass of cold water. If it will dissolve unevenly creating streaks in the water, then you have itcertainty that the honey is of good quality. The artificial honey dissolves evenly and quickly.

3. Weight test.A liter jar should not contain less than 1.4 kg of honey.

4. Crystallization.Well stored honey can last up to a year, but it should crystallize a few months after the harvest. This is a natural process that always takes place in real honey. Crystallization does not change its nutritional properties or healing effect.

The time it takes to lump depends on the type of honey. White acacia honey remains liquid the longest, others should crystallize by the end of the year in which they were collected. Artificial honey does not crystallize - it is one of the methods to check the quality of the product.

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How not to be fooled and buy real honey? Useful hints

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Important

Some producers use heating honey to a high temperature as a way to keep it flowing, but such a product has virtually no medicinal value.

Unripe honey. How to determine the maturity of honey?

The bees deposit honey droplets in the cells of the comb and then begin to thicken it by transporting the droplets between the cells. Honey with more than 20% water content is not yet ripe (except for clover, heather and acacia honey).

In the cells of the comb, in the hive, the maturation process takes place - the evaporation of water and the decomposition of complex sugars into simple sugars. After 4-5 days, the bees seal the cells with wax, preventing the finished honey from deteriorating. If a beekeeper wants to speed up the process and collects honey too early, from the honeycombs that are not yet glued, the product he sells will not be properly mature.

The maturity of honey is defined by its density. At a temperature of 20 degrees C, it should run off lazily, forming a cone. The honey should not run off while vigorously spinning the spoon around its axis.

Can I heat honey?

Yes, if it has crystallized and you want it to become liquid, you can heat it up by putting a jar of honey in a pot of warm water (its temperature should not exceed 25 degrees C) and stirring with a wooden spatula. Remember that honey loses its properties when heated to a temperature above 40 degrees Celsius.

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Find out about the properties of honey:

  • goldenrod honey
  • rapeseed honey
  • buckwheat honey
  • linden honey
  • honeydew honey
  • heather honey
  • manuka honey

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