How To Check Real And Fake Honey – The characteristics of real and fake honey need to be known so as not to be deceived. Honey is known to have a myriad of properties that are very good for the body. Starting from skin care, helping to heal wounds, to as an anti-oxidant.
Honey is a nectar material obtained by bees from flowers. Then, the bees bring these nectar to their hives and undergo three processing processes until they become honey.
However, the community’s need for honey is very large. Not infrequently there are rogue individuals who mix honey with fake ingredients. There is honey mixed with other ingredients such as glucose, dextrose, molasses, syrup sugar, invert sugar, corn syrup, starch, flour, and so on. The goal is to take more profit Instead of healthy, this fake honey can actually cause disease.
Here’s an explanation of the characteristics of real and fake honey, and how to test its originality.
Characteristics of Real Honey
Here are some of the characteristics of real honey, among others:
- Not sticky
- Has a very thick texture
- Flow quickly
- Not easily soluble in water
- The taste of real honey doesn’t stay on the tongue
- Not foam when heated
- Real honey can be cloudy if we look in plain sight
- The real honey will not freeze when put in the freezer
- Real honey has a scent such as the scent of flowers or grass.
How To Check Real And Fake Honey
After knowing the characteristics of real honey without the mixture that has been described above. To further convince you, you can test its originality. Here’s how to test the originality of honey, among others:
Testing Honey with Paper
To distinguish real or mixed honey, you need to try dripping it or pouring it on blank paper. After that try to tear the paper that you have poured honey earlier. If the paper is not easily torn, then the honey is completely pure or original. But on the contrary, if the paper is easily torn, then the honey is fake or there is already a mixture.
Boil Honey using a spoon
To be able to see the characteristics of real honey without mixture, you can boil honey on a spoon. The trick, just pour honey into a spoon. Then heat a spoon that has been filled with honey over a candle or fire. If the honey emits quite a lot of foam and almost or spilled from the spoon, it can be concluded that the honey is real or pure. However, if the honey only emits a little foam, then the honey can be said to be fake honey or has been mixed with other ingredients in it.
Try it with a match.
Other original honey characteristics you can try by smearing the end of a wooden match with honey. Then swipe the end of the match that has been smeared with honey to ignite. If the match is still lit after smearing honey, then the honey is real. Meanwhile, if the honey is fake or has been mixed with other ingredients, then the match does not want to light up.
Freezing Honey
To prove whether honey is real or not, you can try it by putting honey in the freezer. If the honey does not freeze after some time, then the honey is real. However, if the honey you put in the freezer becomes frozen, then the honey already has a mixture or fake.
Dripping Honey into Water
The characteristics of real honey without a mixture you can try by putting honey droplets into the water. Just put a spoonful of honey drops into the water, if the honey drops are not mixed with water and fall to the bottom of the water, then the honey is real. Meanwhile, honey drops that are mixed or even floating in the water, then the honey is fake or there is already a mixture of ingredients
Check using your thumb
Try putting a little honey on your thumb. Check if the honey will spill and spread to other fingers quickly. If that’s the case, it’s likely that honey is fake. Pure honey is thick and not runny. If applied it will not be easy to drip. In addition, the impure taste of honey can last a long time due to the addition of sugar.
Using Vinegar
Mix a tablespoon of honey, a little water, and 2-3 drops of cider vinegar. If this mixture is foamy, there is a good chance that the honey has been adulterated.
Test using white cloth
Drop a teaspoon of honey on a white cloth or suction paper. If the honey sticks out right away and leaves a stain, chances are the honey is fake. Because, real honey will not be absorbed or leave stains on the paper.
Tests on Bread
If you smear pure honey to the bread, the slices will harden. Otherwise, the bread will remain moist.
Egg Yolk Test
If real honey is mixed with yolks, the yolk will look like it is ripe. Otherwise, egg yolks will have no effect if mixed with fake honey.