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I am currently planning to make my own energy gel, for which I will need some form of carbohydrate source, in my case honey. I will appreciate if you can tell me another carbohydrate "agent" that I can easily flavour.

Now I am a person that doesn't like the taste of honey, no matter which one I try I do not like it.

How do I remove the flavour of honey?

Catija
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zython
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    It's not totally clear whether you're asking for alternatives to honey that are shelf-stable, or ways to flavor honey. A shelf-stable viscous sugary alternative is agave nectar. – beth Mar 20 '17 at 20:16
  • well the question clearly asks how to change the flavour of honey, then in the question body I go on to explain why I would ask such a thing, in case going another way woudl be easier – zython Mar 20 '17 at 20:32
  • I don't know to re-flavor honey, but have you considered agave nectar as a replacement. It has a much more subtle flavor that could overridden by other ingredients in your gel (IMHO) ...also it's cheaper :) – Dan Mar 20 '17 at 20:53
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    I think that's the point of what beth was saying... why bother trying to mask the flavor of something you don't like rather than just using a similar product? You're trying to solve a problem that may not be a problem. Is there a particular *reason* you're using honey when you dislike it? – Catija Mar 20 '17 at 20:54
  • well one reason honey might be a better solution for me is that I can get it fairly cheap, and I must say I havent extensively looked into alternatives because I was overwhelmed how many syrup's and the like there are, but dans advice if it is to be trusted sounds solid – zython Mar 20 '17 at 20:57
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    @zython - if agave nectar doesn't work for you, you can also probably further dehydrate any syrup (maple, for example, is commonly available) into a thicker consistency. Even a simple sugar syrup can be made thick and gel-like (soft ball stage or a little looser, or even a caramel), and can be flavored by extracts as you please. – Megha Mar 20 '17 at 21:07
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    Adding to what Megha said, if a syrup isn't as gel-like as you want you could add thickeners such as starch powders which can gel when you heat the mixture and then cool it. – beth Mar 20 '17 at 21:47
  • Agave nectar is expensive at places like Whole Foods but pretty cheap at Mexican grocery stores. – beth Mar 21 '17 at 05:51
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    I accidentally reduced the honey taste when I added cream of tartar to a honey gummy recipe. – Tom J Dec 26 '22 at 08:46

2 Answers2

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You cannot change it. It is always going to be there and bug you.

You taste things when some chemical compound hits a receptor in your mouth or nose (in this case, it is likely to be the nose). It doesn't matter what you add, the offending compound will still be there, and you will still notice it. And as we don't know which compound it is, and given the limited chemical changes you can do to food while staying palatable (basically you can heat things or change the pH and hope that some reactions occur) you are unlikely to ever change that compound. Worse, it is even more likely to be the combination of multiple compounds which you hate in honey, and then you cannot hope to randomly change them all.

People do try masking or dilution. For masking, you add something with such a strong smell that the signal from that one compound gets drowned out when the brain is creating the olfactory sensation. It can work for things to which you are mostly indifferent, but once you absolutely hate something, it stays salient and is perceived together with the masking smell.

Dilution works because some aromas are only unpleasant when they are too intense. But seeing that you want the honey to be a major component, you cannot use dilution here.

So, there is nothing you can do. Either eat cheap bars which you hate, or switch to something else regardless of cost.

rumtscho
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  • Masking base flavors is more than just drowning out - there is some receptor blocking involved at a pre-brain level :) But since these are indeed likely aromas, no such luck :) – rackandboneman Mar 21 '17 at 11:10
  • I am not sure that much receptor blocking occurs, if yes, that would be quite a coincidence and only work between some very specific pairs of compounds. There will be some information loss or information suppression on each step of the process of course, both before and within the brain, independently of what docked onto the receptor, and it is impossible to say how and why the person will recognize a given smell in the end. But this goes way too deep, and usually hated aromas do not get filtered out when you try to mask them, which makes sense, since they are associated with an emotion. – rumtscho Mar 21 '17 at 17:05
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Consider making inverted sugar syrup (plenty of documentation about how to on the web). Can be made very viscous and (from my experience) does not easily catch mold, especially when left acidic. Won't crystallize easily, and can be added to other syrups to keep them from crystallizing. Taste could be too close to honey though...

Consider using commercially made syrups - eg corn syrup, oligosaccharide syrup (check your korean grocery), malt syrup, rice syrup, low grade maple syrup, molasses...

Most of these alternatives (except the maple syrup, and the aforementioned agave nectar) tend to be CHEAPER than honey....

rackandboneman
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