5 Simple Steps to Revive Your Crystallized Honey: The Superb Melt Method

by Texas Homesteader ~ 

It’s just a fact, sooner or later that delicious honey will crystallize. Is there any way to fix it? Or is it ruined? 

Don’t throw it away! It’s simple to restore crystallized honey to the smooth sweetness you love. Come see how.

Is Crystallized Honey Bad?

It’s said that honey is the only food product that has no expiration date. That means it’s still good to eat for the long haul. 

When honey’s crystallized, it’s just as edible as when it’s smooth. But you may want different textures for different foods.

For instance, smooth is better for making a honey glaze or stirring into yogurt. Crystallized might be fun for stirring into hot tea or adding a little sugary texture to homemade granola.

Is Honey Good For Seasonal Allergies?

I’ve heard that consuming local honey daily is good for seasonal pollen allergies. It’s thought that because local honey is produced by the bees using local plant’s pollens, you’re getting a tiny daily dose of those pollens to desensitize your body to reacting to it.

According to the Mayo Clinic, they haven’t really been able to duplicate those results in the lab. But they do confirm that in addition to being a cough suppressant and anti-inflammatory, honey contains small amounts of local pollens. And allergy treatments often treat with small amounts of allergens. So they indicated the theory wasn’t far-fetched.

So whether that’s an old wives tale or proven scientific fact, I really can’t say for sure. But what a delicious way to stack the cards in my favor! 

Ways To Enjoy Eating Honey

If eating local honey is good for allergies, I might as well enjoy it. And I often do! Here’s where I enjoy honey:

• • Honey stirred into Homemade Yogurt  along with a handful of berries for breakfast.
  • Honey Glaze on Homemade Chunky Apple Bread.
  • Honey’s an ingredient in my Homemade Honey/Oat Sandwich Bread.
  • Pumpkin Granola sweetened with honey.
  • Honey Sweetened Smoky BBQ Sauce.
  • Homemade Honey Graham Crackers.
  • Homemade Whipped Cream – No powdered sugar – sweetened with HONEY!
  • Honey/Ginger Haymaker’s Punch for Healthy Hydration.

I only store my honey in glass. (yep, I hate those plastic honey-bears of honey)  These pretty vintage syrup jars help make Pouring Honey Easy. 

But occasionally crystals will form in the honey making it too thick to pour. No worries! Since my honey’s in a glass jar it’s easy to bring it back to its former pourable sweetness.

Hot Water To Melt Crystallized Honey

To melt those crystals you can slowly heat the glass jar containing crystallized honey.  

In the past I’ve heated some water in a pot on the stove (not boiling).  Then I turned off the heat and slowly lowered my room-temperature honey jar into the water to melt the crystals.

Extreme temperature changes are not good for glass & I’ve always been afraid to get the water too hot. So I always err on the side of caution when using this method. 

I hate the possibility of over-heating my honey anyway. I know raw honey has many health benefits and I want to maintain as much of the healthy goodness as possible. So this method is used sparingly.

Using Free Solar Energy To Melt Honey Crystals

It’s hot in Texas during the summer and I enjoy using solar power in many ways. So that Texas heat will slowly heat my jar of honey to melt & dissolve those crystals.

I place my honey jar on our picnic table on a hot sunny day and just wait. The sun heats the jar slowly. And as it does those crystals dissolve back into the honey.

Voila! The honey returns to it’s sweet pourable former self.

By using solar energy I’ve not only incorporated an environmentally-friendly method of heating but it also removes that fear of extreme temperature changes.

So it’s my go-to method these days.

Car Dashboard Trick To Melt Honey Crystals

I’ve also on occasion placed the jar with crystallized honey on the dashboard of our truck as it sits in the driveway on a hot summer’s day. I’ll unscrew the lid just a bit to make sure pressure doesn’t build up inside the jar.

Then I place the jar of crystallized honey atop a kitchen towel on the dashboard. The towel assures no honey drips on the dashboard.

With all the windows rolled up, this method does the trick much faster than placing the jar on our picnic table. That’s because the temps inside the truck get much hotter much more quickly.

So I keep an eye on it and remove the jar as soon as the honey is melted. I prefer my raw honey to be as untouched by heat as possible. So only enough heat to melt the crystals is what I’m after here.

Squeezable Plastic Honey Bear Jars?  Nope!

Many times honey is sold in those cute bear-shaped plastic jars. It’s convenient for pouring honey that’s for sure.

But I prefer to Use Syrup Jars for ease in pouring honey.

Remember, those cute little plastic bears tend to melt if they get too warm. And I’ve always been extremely wary of heating plastic that comes into contact with my food.

So I can’t vouch for how to fix crystallized honey contained in plastic. Other than to cut that plastic jar open and scoop out the crystallized honey into a glass jar and proceed from there.

You can take a preemptive step now though. If you currently have honey in a plastic bottle, why not transfer it to a clean glass jar right now while it’s still pourable? 

Any clean glass jar will do and you’ve just practiced the art of repurposing.

Pat yourself on the back for your environmental moxxy and enjoy that honey for years to come!

~TxH~

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References:
Mayo Clinic – Honey For Seasonal Allergies

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