Honey Test: Did You Bring Home Fake Honey? 4 Tips to Check

Honey Test at home: Not all honey available in the market is real. Learn easy home methods to identify real honey — how to tell if honey is pure or fake using the water test, fire test, and texture.

Honey is used in homes for everything from skincare to fighting infections. It's used extensively in winter to relieve coughs. Often, people unknowingly buy fake honey from the market. Fake honey can also harm the body. You can easily identify real honey. A study published in the Journal of Food Protection found that common ingredients such as sugar, jaggery, and melted candy are often mixed into honey. Let's find out how to identify real honey.

Test Honey with Water

You can use water to test honey. Fill a glass with water and then add a spoonful of honey. If the honey settles at the bottom of the glass, it is real. Fake honey dissolves easily in water.

Real Honey Burns Easily

You can also identify real honey by burning it. For this, dip a matchstick in real honey and try to light it. If the matchstick lights up, it is real honey because it doesn't contain moisture. If the honey is fake, it has been adulterated. For this reason, it will not burn when dipped in honey.

You Can Also Identify by Burning Cotton

If you don't want to use a matchstick, you can also identify real honey using a cotton thread. Dip a cotton thread in honey and try to burn it. If the cotton thread burns immediately, it is real honey. On the other hand, if the honey is fake, the cotton thread will not burn.

Real Honey Crystallises

Real honey starts to slightly solidify over time. If the honey is crystallizing, it's real. Fake honey, however, looks like a liquid.