Burnt Honey Barbecue Sauce

What is Caramelization

Caramelization is the decomposition and breakdown of sugars and removal of water as steam during the dry heating and roasting of foods. The result is a characteristic nutty flavor and amber color.  Caramelization results in the release of the following volatile flavors and aromas:

• Diacetyl: buttery flavor
• Esters and lactones: sweet rum flavor
• Furans: nutty flavor
• Maltol: toasty flavor

The higher the temperature of the caramelization the less sweet the mixture will be.

Sugar Makeup of Honey

Honey is approximately 40% fructose, 30% glucose and 17% water, with the remainder being other sugars, carbohydrates and a small amount of vitamins and minerals. Fructose is a fruit sugar. It occurs naturally in fruits, vegetables and honey. It is 1.7 times sweeter than granulated sugar (sucrose).

How Honey changes when you burn it.

Fructose caramelizes at 230°F. Sucrose (granulated sugar) and glucose (dextrose) caramelize around 320°F. The color of caramel is primarily a result of the caramelization of fructose due to it caramelizing at much lower temperatures than sucrose.

As we take the honey up to 320°F in my recipe the glucose and sucrose begin to barely caramelize as the (40%) fructose is beginning to “burn” and degrade into esters, furans, and maltols. The flavor of burnt honey is nutty, toasty and slightly buttery. Its not bitter in the conventional sense and its definitely not as cloyingly sweet as it was before caramelization.

Is “burning” honey toxic?

No.

However, heating honey will cause its antimicrobial, antibacterial, and antioxidant properties to be destroyed. In the beehive, honey can reach up to 90-95°F. Once you go above these temperatures the beneficial enzymes, pollen and vitamins and minerals are destroyed.

Origin of this Belief

This belief started with Ayurveda, a natural system of medicine, originating in India more than 3,000 years ago. Ayurvedic wisdom states that heating honey will cause “Ama” or undigested matter in the body, which is thought to be the root of disease. Verses 243-248 of the Caraka Samhita, one of Ayurvedic medicine’s main texts, describes heated honey as a deadly poison. 

While it is fact that heated honey is toxic to bees. The same can not be said for humans. At least not as conclusively as Ayurvedic wisdom proclaims. The compound created when honey is heated is HMF (5-hydroxymethylfurfural). And like most anything in life, HMF should consumed in moderation.

HMF (5-hydroxymethylfurfural)

HMF is absent from fresh foods. HMF is formed when sugars are heated (i.e. through the Maillard reaction, caramelization, and dehydration). HMF is present in honey and other heat-processed, sugar-containing foodstuffs, from our breakfast cereals, breads, dairy products, and fruit juices to liquors at different concentrations.

Studies that proport to show HMF’s negative effects are limited to prolonged and/or excessive exposure. However, more recent studies show HMF to be generally safe. Moreover, HMF offers the body many beneficial antioxidants and anti-allergens. HMF is toxic only for bees and their larvae. As a result, beekeepers monitor HMF levels in hive-honey and ensure never to feed their bees heat treated sugar products.

Several types of roasted coffee were analyzed and found to contain anywhere from 300 to 2,900 mg/kg of HMF. Prunes contain up to 2,200 mg/kg. If you’ve eaten a seared steak, candied pecans or drank a cup of coffee you’ve consumed HMF. It is ubiquitous in daily life.

If you follow the dietary recommendations from the Ayurvedic wisdom, then avoid heated honey. Otherwise there is no good reason to avoid heated honey unless you are also avoiding all heat-treated fruits, fruit juices, cereals, caramels, syrups, breads, coffee, heated meat and vegetables, and liquors.

Moderation is key. Unless your diet consists solely of prunes and coffee then you have nothing to worry about.

Burnt Honey Barbecue Sauce

We use hickory smoke powder to achieve maximum smoke flavor without affecting the viscosity of the barbecue sauce like we would if we used liquid smoke. Liquid smoke is condensed, liquefied and filtered version of its gaseous predecessor. Hickory smoke powder is liquid smoke dried and blended with with maltodextrin, and anti caking agents. The smoked flavor comes from a complex mixture of compounds, the most desirable being guaiacol.

Guaiacol

Guaiacol is responsible for the aroma of smoked bacon, smoked fish, whisky and roast coffee. It brings the perfect aromatic complexity to the barbecue sauce. When paired with the nutty, toasty, and buttery notes of the burnt honey, the smokiness adds an excellent layer of aromatic complexity.

No Fresh Aromatics

While I make no representations as to the shelf life of the barbecue sauce, the lack of fresh garlic or fresh onion in addition to the acidity in the ketchup and Worcestershire sauce increase the shelf life of the sauce well above its peers that call for fresh versions of garlic and onion. Moreover, honey does not expire. This is the perfect recipe to pressure can or sous vide pasteurize at home if you so desire.

Acidity

Finally, the acidity in Worcestershire sauce paired with the acidity in the ketchup give us a much needed brightness which cuts through the sweetness of the sauce. This is the balance of sweet and sour that every barbecue sauce needs.  If you desire to change my recipe by adding a 1/4 cup of apple cider vinegar that should be fine. However, please taste the sauce prior to adding additional vinegar. After 4 rounds of recipe testing I found that no additional acidity outside of that already present in the Worcestershire sauce and ketchup is needed.

Make sure you pair this with my Smoked Oxtail Mac and Cheese recipe.

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