materials for rock candy experiment

Rock Candy Science Experiment: Step-by-Step How-To Guide

By: Author Hess UnAcademy Team

Posted on Last updated: September 18, 2023

Are you on the lookout for exciting and educational activities to enjoy with your curious little ones? Are your kids looking for a fun indoor activity that couples the wonders of science with the joys of eating? Well, we’ve got a treat for you—literally! A DIY rock candy science experiment is the perfect activity.

Homemade rock candy is a good example of a kid-friendly edible science experiment and it’s an example of an easy way to make homeschooling fun . It’s a fantastic hands-on activity that combines the joy of making delicious treats with the wonders of scientific discovery. Trust us, your kids will be buzzing with excitement, and you’ll be their official hero of the day!

Finding engaging and educational experiments can be a challenge. Sure, there’s no shortage of ideas out there, but finding the perfect balance between fun and learning can sometimes feel like searching for a needle in a haystack.

That’s why we’re share this rock candy science experiment—a delightful way to pique your child’s interest in science while indulging their sweet tooth.

Imagine watching your little ones’ eyes light up as they witness the magical transformation of simple ingredients into mouthwatering rock candy crystals. Not only will they be fascinated by the process, but they’ll also be absorbing essential scientific concepts without even realizing it. From crystallization to supersaturation, this experiment is a fantastic opportunity to spark their curiosity and set them on a path to becoming budding scientists.

Plus, let’s not forget about the joy of spending quality time with your kids. With the rock candy science experiment, you’ll be able to create lifelong memories as you bond over a shared love of exploration and delicious treats (adult supervision highly recommended). Whether it’s a rainy day activity or a weekend adventure, this experiment is sure to bring smiles, laughter, and a healthy dose of sugar-induced happiness to your household.

So, are you ready to dive into the captivating world of rock candy science? Stick around as we guide you through this step-by-step how-to guide, ensuring that you and your little scientists have a blast every step of the way. Get ready to transform ordinary sugar into a dazzling crystal creation that will not only satisfy their taste buds but also ignite their passion for learning. Let’s embark on this sweet journey together!

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DIY Rock Candy Science Experiment

My kids have always loved eating rock candy, but it never occurred to me to let them make some themselves. But the other day, I got a text from my sister-in-law with pictures of my cute little niece and nephew enjoying their own homemade rock candy. My other sister-in-law responded saying how fun that looked and she’d like to try it with her own daughter.

My kids, of course, didn’t want to be left out and asked to make their own rock candy. And I, being the awesomely fantastic homeschooling mom that I am, told them I’d do them one better. I told them we could turn a homemade rock candy adventure into a full-on DIY homemade rock candy science project, with the scientific method and everything!

The kids were thrilled. Anything to get them another dose of sweets, am I right?

STEAM activities are very popular in our household as is, but this one, in particular, was especially fun.

This article may contain affiliate links. Please see our disclosure policy for more details.

DIY Homemade Rock Candy Science Project

Because we wanted to use this science project to teach our kids the scientific method, we started by gathering them all together and having them decide what they wanted to learn or discover. What questions did they want to ask?

If you turn this adventure into a science project, you’ll want your kids to come up with a couple of questions as well. I made these handy scientific method worksheets for you to print off and use if you want, or you can use a notebook.

These are some of our favorite printable worksheets for kids so don’t miss out!

A few examples of questions we gave our kids include:

• What happens when you put a string in a high sugar concentrated solution?
• If food coloring is added to the solution will it change the result?
• Can layers of color be made with the candy?
• Can you add flavors beyond the straight sugar?
• Will a Kool-Aid solution do both color and flavor?
• Can you do crystals in a spherical setting like a chocolate ball?
• Does the ball need to be turned or stationary in the crystallization process…which gives a better result?
• Can you make a stalagmite candy with the same concept only in reverse?
• Will the results change if I use powdered sugar or brown sugar instead of granulated sugar?
• Will the results change if the string or stick starts out wet vs dry?
• Will sugar crystals grow if I use a sugar-water solution that has not been boiled (supersaturated solution)?

These are of course merely examples. Let your kids get creative and exercise their scientific minds! And don’t worry if a few kids pick duplicate questions, or if everybody picks the same. The real lesson here is the process.

NOTE – We plan on continuing this experiment over the course of the next year or so, updating it periodically as we experiment with other questions.

Our kids decided to answer the following questions:

• Spencer wanted to know if he could make stalactites and stalagmites out of sugar crystals.
• Nicole wanted to experiment with flavors and see what the difference is between plain rock candy crystals and flavored. She made a plain solution and one with vanilla extract.
• Eugene was very confused about the whole process and couldn’t grasp what we were trying to do, so he asked the question, “Will sugar crystals grow better with a supersaturated solution made from boiling water, or with the same ratio of sugar to water, but without the boiling?”
• Jennifer wanted to experiment with kool-aid and wanted to see if mixing kool-aid in the sugar-water solution would make flavored and colored rock candy crystals.

Now let the experiment begin!

How To Make Homemade Rock Candy

Ingredients For Homemade Rock Candy

• 2 Cups of water
• 6 Cups of sugar (white, granulated) plus some spare
• Optional – Food coloring (2 drops of food coloring per jar/cup)
• Optional – Flavoring extract (1 tsp)

Other Needed Materials

• Clean containers such as cups or mason jars
• Something to grow sugar crystals on, such as some string or a wooden skewer
• Something to hold the thing your crystals form on away from sides of the jar and bottom of the jar, such as a pencil or some clothespins
• Mixing spoon

Instructions For Making Rock Candy

• Make sure you gather your tools beforehand. You don’t want to let your sugar solution cool before you are ready.
• Put each measuring cup of water in the pot and heat it to boiling. Make sure your pot has a lot of space because the solution will expand quite a bit.
• Once you have boiling water, begin adding granulated sugar a little at a time.
• Keep mixing and heating until the sugar is completely dissolved. This took us about 20 minutes.
• Once the sugar is dissolved, divide your supersaturated solution into each cup or glass jar.
• Add your flavoring and/or your coloring now! Not too much, and make sure you mix well.
• Dip your string or wooden skewer into the supersaturated solution. Anchor it to the top of the container somehow. We used a string and a paperclip. Make sure the string isn’t touching the sides of the jar or the bottom of the jar .
• Put your sugar-water solution somewhere safe to sit for a few days. Watch and wait for your sugar crystals to grow. These are your rock candy crystals.
• It is unclear how long you need to let your sugar crystals grow for. Some of our cups had crystals after 2 days, others still looked pitiful after an entire week. My dad says when he was a kid, they used to wait for a month. I would recommend using seed crystals by rolling your (wet) string or skewer in granulated sugar before putting it in your supersaturated solution and see if that speeds things up.
• Enjoy your delicious food science project of homemade rock candy.

Our Rock Candy Science Project Results

Spencer (age 10) asked the following question: Can I make stalagmites and stalactites out of sugar crystals by hanging an absorbent material from one cup of sugar solution to another?

THE RESULTS: Using a sugar to water ratio of 3:1 with a strip of cotton fabric did not create stalagmites or stalactites. The cotton strip did not absorb sugar solution fast enough to get it dripping. I wonder if a ratio of 2:1 would work better? It’s also possible the cups were not filled enough. We will try this again.

As you can see, he still got some great candy crystals out of the experiment, the solution just didn’t crawl up the cloth and make crystal drippings.

Nicole (age 9) asked the following question: Can I flavor my sugar crystals by adding vanilla extract right before letting the rock candy crystals grow?

THE RESULTS: Yes,adding about 1 tsp of vanilla extract to the sugar solution after it has been boiled added a nice vanilla flavoring to the finished rock candy. I wonder what other flavors I could make in the future?

Eugene (age 7) asked the following question: Can I make sugar crystals without boiling the water and sugar solution?

THE RESULTS: No, merely mixing water and sugar without boiling will not create an environment that sugar crystals can grow in. It is important to make a supersaturated solution by boiling the water with the sugar.

Jennifer (age 6) asked the following question: Can I use Kool-Aid (or powdered other drink mix) to change the color and the flavor of my rock candy at the same time?

THE RESULTS: Yes, Kool-Aid (or other powdered drink mixes) will change the color and the flavor of the rock candy, while still allowing sugar crystals to grow. I wonder what other things I could add to the sugar crystals, such as soda for example, without killing the crystals?

Rock Candy Science Fair Project Explained

If you want to use this experiment as a science fair project, or if you want to teach your kids the why behind the experiment, I’ve explained it below.

When you first combined the boiling water with the multiple cups of sugar, you created a supersaturated solution of sugar-water. When the sugar-water is supersaturated like this, the water can only properly mix with (and hold) the sugar when both are very hot (boiling water and sugar).

As the hot water begins to cool it can no longer hold the sugar so the supersaturated solution begins to separate and the sugar crystals begin to cling to your skewer or string.

The sugar molecules that were originally on the string/skewer will act as seed crystals, where more sugar molecules from the sugar solution will cling until sugar crystals begin to grow. Some crystal growth will even happen on the side of the jar.

Feel free to use this activity as a simple science fair project . Your peers will be impressed with this tasty scientific experiment.

Or if you’re looking for another fun science project idea, what about something involving the science of slime ?

Enjoy making your very own edible rock candy science experiment!

And remember to grab your free worksheets!

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How to Make Rock Candy or Sugar Crystals

Sugar crystals are called rock candy because these hard crystals are edible. Sugar (sucrose) crystals are one of the few types of crystals you can grow and eat. You can eat the natural clear crystals or you can color and flavor them.

Rock Candy Materials

You only need a few common kitchen materials for this crystal project:

• 3 cups sugar (sucrose)
• 1 cup boiling water
• food coloring (optional)
• flavoring (optional — good choices include cherry, peppermint, and cinnamon)
• clean glass or plastic jar
• wooden skewer or cotton string

You don’t need string or a skewer to grow sugar crystals, but they are good support structures for making rock candy sticks. Crystals also grow on pipe cleaners, but they probably aren’t food-friendly. The crystals also grow on the bottom and sides of their container, forming a confection that is known as Misri in India and Iran.

You can use different kinds of sugar, but avoid powdered sugar because it often contains anti-caking agents. Anti-caking agents don’t dissolve, so the tiny particles attract crystal growth. While this sounds like a good things, it means you’ll get a mass of small crystals rather than large crystals.

Grow Sugar Crystals

The procedure is really easy.

• Dissolve the sugar in the boiling water. Heat the sugar solution on the stove, or in the microwave if you have trouble getting the sugar to dissolve. Once the sugar dissolves, remove it from heat. If you keep heating it, it hardens and burns.
• Add a few drops of food coloring and flavor, if desired.
• Let the solution cool a bit before pouring it into your jar. You don’t want to get burned!
• Pour the sugar solution into a jar. Place a wooden skewer into the jar or else hang a string into the middle of the jar, tied to a pencil or butter knife.
• Place the container somewhere it won’t be disturbed. If you like, cover the jar with a paper towel or coffee filter to allow evaporation while keeping the crystal solution clean.
• It takes a few days to get good crystal growth. If you see crystals forming on the top of the jar, you can remove them and eat them. If you leave them, these crystals will compete with your stick or string for sugar and will reduce the size of your crystals.
• Remove the crystals and enjoy them! If you want to store the crystals before eating them, keep them in an airtight container so humidity in the air won’t make the rock candy sticky.

If you enjoyed growing sugar crystals, how about trying another easy crystal-growing project ?

How Long Does It Take to Grow Sugar Crystals?

Sugar crystals may appear overnight or it may take several days (weeks) for growth. Sugar crystal growth depends on three main factors:

• Solution Concentration : Crystals don’t start growing until you have a saturated solution , where no more sugar dissolves in the water. Whether or not the liquid is saturated depends on the amount of sugar in the water and the temperature. If you aren’t seeing crystal growth, try lowering the temperature. Refrigeration might do the trick!
• Temperature : Temperature determines when crystals start growing and how big they are. Slow cooling resulting in slower growth, but larger crystal formation. Similarly, quick cooling promotes crystal growth, but you get a mass of smaller crystals. Ideally, slowly cool the hot sugar water down to room temperature (or lower). Quick cooling doesn’t yield great results. Putting the liquid in a window causes temperature fluctuations, so crystals dissolve when it’s warm and form when it’s cool. Avoid the window.
• Humidity : Humid air contributes water to the liquid and slows crystal growth. Dry air evaporates water and aids crystal growth. If you aren’t seeing crystals, try improving air circulation or reducing humidity. The easiest solution is turning on a fan.

About Sugar Crystals

The white granular sugar you buy at the store is sucrose (C 12 H 22 O 11 ), which is a disaccharide consisting of glucose and fructose subunits. Raw sugar is usually golden or brown and contains some natural impurities, but still crystallizes. However, while pure sugar crystals are colorless, raw sugar crystals retain their color.

Sucrose contains covalent bonds and crystallizes using these bonds, too. The molecule crystalizes in the monoclinic space group. The resulting crystal is hard, brittle, and rigid. Examples of other crystals that contain covalent bonds are quartz and diamond.

• Beevers, C. A.; McDonald, T. R. R.; Robertson, J. H.; Stern, F. (1952). “The crystal structure of sucrose”. Acta Crystallogr . 5 (5): 689–90. doi: 10.1107/S0365110X52001908
• Hynes, R. C.; Le Page, Y. (1991). “Sucrose, a convenient test crystal for absolute structures”. Journal of Applied Crystallography . 24 (4): 352. doi: 10.1107/S0021889891002492
• Richardson, Tim (2002). Sweets: A History of Candy . Bloomsbury. ISBN 978-1-58234-229-0.

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Rock Candy Experiment

ROCK CANDY EXPERIMENT FOR KIDS

• 2-3 cups of sugar
• 1 cup of water
• A jar or glass
• A large saucepan
• Clothespins 
• Food coloring
• Candy flavoring
• Combine equal parts of sugar and water in a saucepan and heat until all of the sugar is dissolved.

• Then, slowly add more sugar and mix,  slowly adding more sugar and mixing  until the sugar will no longer dissolve in the water.

• The water should start to look  a little cloudy .  That is when you know that no more sugar is dissolving and the perfect sugar-saturation has been reached. 
• The short version is that you are creating a saturated sugar solution, or a solution in which no more sugar can dissolve at a particular temperature.
• The amount of sugar verses water used should be  roughly 3:1 .  You can easily double & triple the recipe as long as you mantain a 3:1 ratio.
• Add  candy flavoring   if desired, and then continue to heat the water until it comes to a simmer. 
• Remove the sugar-water from the heat and allow it to cool. 
• Cut the  skewers  to a desirable size for the jar(s) that you are using.  Then, dip the sticks in water and roll them in sugar.

• Set the sugar-coated sticks aside and allow them to dry.  
• Once your sugar-water is cool enough pour it into jars, using one jar for each color of  rock candy  that you wish to make.  
• Once the sticks are dry carefully  place them into the jar(s).   

• You want to make sure that the sugar-coated sticks are  completely dry  before placing them in the jars.  
• The  rock candy  needs the sugar on the sticks to grow, and if the sugar isn't dry it will dissolve in the water.  
• It is also  important  to make sure that the sticks are not touching the bottom or sides of the jar.

• After day three we could really see growth!

• By day 5 my girls were dying to actually eat  rock candy , haha.  But, this was a great lesson in patience.

• After a week our  rock candy  was almost ready!  Just look at those beautiful jars!

• After a week your  rock candy  can be removed from the jars and enjoyed.
• You can  extend the fun  and  grow your rock candy  longer if desired.
• Once you and the kids are ready remove the candy sticks from the jar(s), and then place them on a clean surface to dry.  
• Once dry you will have  a yummy treat  to enjoy! 
• Rock Candy: What's Going On?
• Sugary Secrets: Candy Making Chemistry
• The Sweet Science of Candy Making

Growing a Jeweled Rose is a site packed with fun and educational activities for kids. Read more about us or catch up with our favorite posts .

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Crystal Underwood is the writer and creator of Growing A Jeweled Rose. She has worked extensively with children and strongly believes in the importance of play at the core of early learning. She is passionate about the early years and believes that childhood should be a truly magical time in life. For all the best kids activities connect with Growing a Jeweled Rose below!

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How to Make Rock Candy Crystals with Kool-Aid

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I have a super fun kitchen science activity for you today~ How to Make Rock Candy with Kool-Aid. This is the perfect at home Summer project to do with kids right now. (See more Kitchen Science ideas!)

I took a lot of pictures of this project. They were just so pretty and colorful!

Rock candy crystals are easy to make, but take some time. You’ll need to plan ahead for this one! We let ours grow for 2 weeks.

To make them, you need just a few supplies.

Granulated sugar

6 inch Wooden Skewers

Jars or glasses

Kool-Aid packs in various flavors & colors

Clothespins

Preparing Your Sticks for the Rock Candy

We used wooden skewers. I cut the sharp tips off the top so nobody would get hurt when eating them!

Soak the sticks in water for 30 minutes to an hour. I places them into a cup of water and stick a bowl over the top to keep them down since they float!

Once they are fully wet, pull them out and roll the ends in sugar. Let them dry completely on a plate. This gives the sugar crystals a base to begin growing on the sticks.

Making the Sugar Syrup

In a large pot, combine sugar and water. You will want a lot of sugar. You’ll use about 2- 2 1/2 cups of sugar for every 1 cup of water.

To make 5 different flavors I used 8 cups of water and I believe 17 cups of sugar. (I kind of lost count towards the end!) The trick is to keep adding until the sugar does not dissolve anymore.

Cook until all of the sugar is completely dissolved and it comes just to a boil.

Remove from the heat and allow it to cool for 10-15 minutes (depending on the quantity you make it may take a little longer to cool.)

Pouring Sugar Syrup Into Mason Jars

Prepare your jars. Make sure they are clean and ready. Pour a packet of Kool-Aid into your jar.

With the flavor intensity, you definitely could split these Kool-Aid packets into two jars. We didn’t but there was a ton of flavor!

You can do this without Kool-aid, too! Just add in flavor extracts and add food coloring. The easy thing with using Kool-Aid is that it already has the color and flavoring.

Carefully pour the sugar solution into the jars and stir it well. It is tricky to get all of the Kool-Aid to dissolve. You can see from my pictures that mine was not fully dissolved, but it’s ok.

Attach the sticks to clothespins with the sugar side down. You don’t want the stick to touch the side or the bottom of the glass jar. If it does, the crystals will grow and attach them making it harder to remove.

When you put the sticks into the jar you’ll have to balance the clothespins of centered a little bit so they stay on top.

Now the waiting game begins. They take 10-14 days to grow fully.

I covered out jars with foil for the two weeks to keep them clean.

We peeked at them a lot over the days. Crystals form on the top of the jar and I broke them up every couple of days. You want to disturb them as little as possible, though.

When you finally decide to pull them out to eat, they will be drippy and messy. Just lay them on the side of the pan to drip dry.

Now you get to eat them! This is the best part. My kids all wanted to try all of the flavors.

Luckily there was a lot of crystal growth left in the bottom of the jars. They could all try the different flavors!

The Science Behind The Rock Candy Crystals:

When you make the sugar syrup for the rock candy, you are making a supersaturated solution. This means there is more sugar in it than can actually stay in there. It is unstable.

As the temperature decreases, the sugar comes out of the solution. This sugar forms into crystals.

We prepared the sticks for crystal growth by putting some sugar on it allowing the sugar to start attaching to it. These are called seed crystals.

The other thing going on with this is evaporation. During the 2-week period of crystal growth, water evaporates from the jars, too. As the water leaves, there is still more sugar available to grow on to the crystals.

Try Some More Kitchen Science Experiments:

Kitchen Science: Homemade Hard Candy Lollipops

Kitchen Science: Homemade Butter in a Jar

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Kitchen Chemistry: Cake Experiment

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Former school teacher turned homeschool mom of 4 kids. Loves creating awesome hands-on creative learning ideas to make learning engaging and memorable for all kids!

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Can you add multiple sticks in each jar?

Yes, as long as they are not touching each other, They would grow together otherwise.

How long do they keep?

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Sugar Crystal Experiment

This is an absolutely sweet science experiment! Grow sugar crystals and make homemade rock candy with this simple chemistry experiment. We can show you how to set up a science fair project to go along with it! Growing sugar crystals is a fun and easy science experiment for kids. .

Incredible Edible Science

Who doesn’t love science you can eat ? Grow sugar crystals for tasty chemistry , and the kids will have a blast learning all about crystals!

Crystal science has fascinated humans for thousands of years. Many of our precious gemstones are formations of crystal. Check out other crystal science projects like our salt crystals and borax crystals. You can also make edible rock candy geodes .

This sugar crystal experiment uses the same saturation principles and makes a saturated solution to form the crystals. Growing crystals is fun for kids and teaches them about solutions, molecular bonds, patterns, and energy. All from two ingredients: sugar and water!

Oh, and of course, you can incorporate it into a geology lesson , too!

💡 You can eat these crystals when you are done growing them, making it even more fun!

How to Grow Sugar Crystals

Why do we call chemistry experiments like this kitchen science ? It is because all the needed supplies come straight out of the kitchen. Easy!

Note: You will need to set aside 8+ days to complete this sugar crystal experiment.

• 1 cup water
• 4 cups sugar
• Edible glitter
• Food coloring

Also check out more fun ideas for mason jar science! Once you set up your sugar crystal experiment, try a few more quick science in a jar ideas!

HOW TO MAKE SUGAR CRYSTALS

STEP 1. The day before starting your sugar crystal experiment, cut a piece of string a little longer than your jars. Tie one end of the string to a straw. Tie a knot in the other end.

Get the strings wet and coat them in sugar. Let them dry overnight.

STEP 2.   Add four cups of sugar and one cup of water to a saucepan the following day and heat until boiling. Heating the water to dissolve the sugar is the key to making your supersaturated solution.

Create the sugar solution: Heat water in a saucepan until it just begins to boil. Remove the saucepan from the heat. Add granulated sugar to the hot water, stirring continuously, until no more sugar dissolves. Keep adding sugar and stirring until you see some sugar settling at the bottom of the saucepan without dissolving further. This indicates that you have a saturated solution.

STEP 3. Pour your sugar mixture into the jars. Add edible food coloring to each jar and add some edible glitter.

STEP 4. Lower the string into the jar and place the jars in a safe place. Leave the sugar crystals to form for at least a week.

SUGAR CRYSTALS: DAY 8

Once the sugar crystals are as big as you want them, remove them from the sugar solution. Lay them on a paper towel or plate and let them dry for several hours.

Inspect the sugar crystals with a magnifying glass or microscope when they are dry . How are the crystals similar? How are they different? What can you see in the microscope or with a magnifying glass that you can’t see with your eyes?

Fabulous, edible science is at your fingertips when you explore science in the kitchen with your kids!

FREE Geology Activities Guide

Just because it’s food or candy doesn’t mean you can’t apply the scientific method .

Sugar Crystal Science Fair Projects

Science projects are an excellent way for older kids to show what they know about science. They can also be used in various environments, including classrooms, homeschooling, clubs, and groups.

💡 Kids can take everything they have learned about using the scientific method , stating a hypothesis, creating variables , and analyzing and presenting data.

Want to turn this sugar crystals experiment into a cool sugar crystallization science project? Check out these helpful resources below. Take a look at the science fair project outline below to get started.

• Science Project Tips From A Teacher
• Science Fair Board Ideas
• Easy Science Fair Projects

Sample Science Procedure to Grow Sugar Crystals:

• Begin the project by explaining what crystals are and the process of crystallization. Take a look at different examples of sugar crystals to learn more.
• Formulate a hypothesis. For example, “I predict that crystals will grow faster/bigger in a solution with more sugar.”
• Prepare the different containers for growing crystals according to the steps above.
• Encourage kids to set up multiple containers with different variables to test.
• a. Vary the sugar concentration in the solution (e.g., 1 cup sugar:1 cup water, 1 cup sugar:1/2 cup water, etc.).
• b. Compare different types of sugar (granulated sugar, powdered sugar, brown sugar).
• c. Test the effect of temperature by placing one container in the fridge and another in a warm place. d. Investigate the impact of time by checking the crystals’ growth at regular intervals (e.g., every day for a week).
• Have the kids observe the containers regularly and record them in a notebook. They should note changes in crystal size, shape, and formation patterns. Use our free science fair pack to help!
• Help the kids analyze their results and draw conclusions based on their observations.
• Discuss whether their hypotheses were supported and if they noticed any unexpected findings.
• Prepare a display board for the science fair, showcasing the experiment’s steps, observations, and results.

This project provides an excellent opportunity for kids to learn about the scientific method, observation, and the fascinating world of crystal formation while enjoying some sweet treats!

More Fun Edible Experiments

See if you can turn one of these science experiments into a science fair project!

• Strawberry DNA Extraction (not edible, but a great project)
• Make Edible Geodes
• Fizzing Lemonade
• Maple Syrup Snow Candy
• Homemade Butter
• Ice Cream In A Bag

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If you’re looking to grab all of our printable science projects in one convenient place plus exclusive worksheets and bonuses like a STEAM Project pack, our Science Project Pack is what you need! Over 300+ Pages!

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Grow Rock Candy Crystal Science Experiment

In this fun and easy crystal science experiment, we’re going to grow rock candy crystals.  

Note: Since hot water in involved, please insure adult supervision is utilized.

• Measuring cups
• Clean glass jar
• Butter knife or popsicle stick
• Rough string or yarn
• Microwave safe container
• Food coloring

Instructions:

• Tie a piece of the string to the center of the popsicle stick. Lay the popsicle stick across the top of the jar. Let the string hang down inside the jar. Make sure the string does not touch the side or bottom of the jar.
• Add three cups of sugar to the microwave safe container.
• Now add one cup of water to the sugar.
• Use the spoon to mix the sugar and water.
• With adult supervision, microwave the sugar and water mixture for two minutes.
• Have the adult remove the container and use the spoon to carefully stir the hot sugar water solution. Be careful to avoid splatters as the solution is very hot!
• Now have the adult microwave the solution for another two minutes.
• Have the adult carefully and gently stir the hot solution one more time.
• If you like, add several drops of food coloring at this time to give your candy some color.
• Carefully have the adult pour the sugar solution into the clean glass jar.
• Now dip the string into the solution for several moments and allow the string to absorb some of the sugar solution.
• Lay the string on the wax paper to dry. Be sure the strings lays perpendicular to the pencil and forms the shape of a T.
• Once dry, lower the string into the jar of sugar solution. The solution will have thickened so carefully work the string down into the solution.
• Place a paper towel over the top of the jar to keep out dust and debris and allow the string to remain in the solution for a week.
• Look at the string throughout the week and observe any changes.
• After a week, remove the string and enjoy your sugar rock crystal candy!

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How it Works:

The sugar dissolves in the heated water. As the solution cools, it becomes less able to hold the dissolved sugar. The sugar then clings to string and forms the rock candy crystals. 

Make This A Science Project:

CAUTION: Do not eat – experiment making different solutions and record the rate at which crystals forms. Some ideas to test would be Epsom salts, Borax, and salt. 

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Did you know that candy-making is really just a tasty form of chemistry? Next time you bite into your favorite sweet treat, consider the time and scientific experimentation that went into creating a shelf-stable, packaged candy that not only stays fresh but tastes AMAZING.

Learn more about the science behind your favorite Halloween treats, and find out how to create candy experiments of your own at home!

In general, candy is made by dissolving sugar into water to create a solution. Granulated sugar, the most common type used in candy-making, is sucrose, a disaccharide molecule made up of glucose and fructose. When you force these two molecules to break apart, a very tasty reaction occurs: caramelization. The way that we force this reaction to occur is by adding heat into the mix when we try and dissolve sugar into water. Heating up the solution forces the sucrose molecules to break up and caramelize.

But when we do that, the sugar molecules really want to crystallize back into their solid form. Candy-makers use that crystallization process, and some strategic interference, to create the candies that we know and love.

The two basic categories of candy made this way:

• Crystalline candies like rock candy and fudge.
• Non-crystalline candies like caramels and marshmallows.

The key to mastering candy-making and creating amazing sweet treats is figuring out the concentration of sugar in your solution and the temperature that you need to heat it to. Lower concentrations of sugar are used with lower temperatures, since the more you heat your water the more sugar you can force to dissolved. Temperatures range anywhere from 223 degrees Fahrenheit to 350 degree Fahrenheit. Any higher and your sugar will burn (and taste bitter).

Itching to make your own candy at home? The most fun recipe to make is probably rock candy! Not only will you get to experiment with candy-making science, you’ll get to watch the formation of sugar crystals.

Homemade Rock Candy Experiment

Ingredients

• 2 cups water
• 6 cups granulated sugar
• Optional: 1/2 to 1 teaspoon flavoring extract or oil – feel free to get creative!
• Optional: food coloring – to give your candy a fun color
• 4 12-ounce jars or one quart-sized jar
• Cotton thread & pencils or 4 wooden skewers
• Candy thermometer

The Experiment

• Clean your jars with hot water.
• For each jar, cut a piece of string that’s a few inches longer that the height of your jar and tape it to a pencil. Position the pencil over the mouth of the jar and wind it until the end of the string is hanging about an inch from the bottom. If you’re using skewers, use a clothespin to hang it in the jar.
• Bring 2 cups of water to a boil over medium high heat, then add one cup of sugar. Stir until it dissolves completely. Repeat this step with all 6 cups of sugar to create a supersaturated liquid. If your sugar is not dissolving, raise the heat.
• Heat the sugar solution until it reaches 230 degrees Fahrenheit on your candy thermometer. This is called the “soft ball” stage in candy-making.
• Remove the solution from heat and add flavorings (no more than 1 teaspoon).
• Carefully wet the strings or skewers in your syrup and roll them in granulated sugar. This will be the base of the sugar crystals.
• Optional: Add 6-7 drops of food coloring to your jars.
• Pour the sugar solution into your jars, leaving some room at the top.
• Position your strings or skewers in the clean jars as outlined in step 2.
• Let your jars sit undisturbed for 3-5 days. Watch your jars as candy crystals form! Make sure you don’t jiggle your jars too much. For larger candy crystals, put your jars in a dark warm room (or the back of the pantry).
• Finally! It’s time to enjoy some tasty candy!

Did you try this experiment? Tell us your results!

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Stay-at-home science project: Grow your own rock candy

By Sandra Gutierrez G.

Posted on May 7, 2020 4:00 PM EDT

Welcome to PopSci’s at-home science projects series. On weekdays at noon, we’ll be posting new projects that use ingredients you can buy at the grocery store. Show us how it went by tagging your project on social media using #popsciprojects.

Any chef would agree that cooking is basically applied science and, unless you are an actual scientist working from home, your kitchen is the closest thing you’ve got to a lab. Following a recipe is essentially the same as running an experiment, and the best part is that you get to eat the delicious result. This project is no exception.

Making rock candy is easy—it only requires sugar, water, and patience. But if you don’t get your proportions right, you’ll be stuck waiting for crystals to form until the end of time. And that’s just sad.

Time: 30-40 minutes of prep, then up to two weeks of waiting

Difficulty: easy

What you’ll need

• 2 ½ cups of sugar
• 1 cup of water
• A pair of chopsticks (or any thin wooden stick)
• 2 (12-ounce) mason jars (or any heat-proof glass container with a similarly wide opening)
• Clothespins
• Paper towels
• (Optional) Food coloring of your choice
• (Optional) Food flavoring of your choice

Instructions

1. Bring the water to a boil . Needless to say, this step should be performed by an adult to avoid any burns. Once the first bubbles start to appear, turn the heat to low.

2. Pour the sugar in to create a supersaturated solution. Do it slowly and keep stirring until all the crystals have dissolved. Eventually, you’ll feel like you’re inhaling some of the sugar in the steam—keep going. They don’t call it supersaturated for nothing.

• Note: The amounts of water and sugar in this formula will be good for two rock candy sticks. If you want to make more, increase the quantities, making sure to maintain the same 2.5-to-1 ratio of sugar and water. This, as you’ll see later, is crucial.

3. Let your solution cool down to room temperature. You can leave it in the pot or pour it directly into the mason jars. Moving it to the jars will accelerate the cooling process.

4. (Optional) Add color and flavoring. If you want to give your rock candy some color, put a couple drops of food coloring into the solution and stir. How much you use will depend on how vibrant you want the color to be. This is also the time to add flavorings. Again, how much you use will depend on how intense you want the flavor to be.

• Note: If you want each piece of candy to be a different color or flavor, pour the solution into your mason jars and add the attributes of your choice to each one.

5. Wet your sticks. Separate your chopsticks and put them in a glass of water. How deep you’ll need to submerge them will depend on the size of your mason jars and the amount of solution you made. For 12-ounce jars, dunk your chopsticks up to a third of their length. Then, take them back out.

6. Dip the wet ends of your chopsticks in sugar. Pour some sugar on a plate and roll those sticks around in it. Make sure they pick up as many crystals as possible.

7. Let the chopsticks dry for a couple minutes. If you can, place them on top of something so the sugar-covered end stays in the air.

8. Prep your mason jars. If you haven’t already, pour any food coloring and flavoring into the mason jars and fill them with the sugar solution. Make sure each jar has enough to fully submerge the sugar-coated ends of your chopsticks. You won’t need the lid, but if it helps, twist the band shut to make the opening smaller.

9. Put one chopstick in each mason jar. The sugar-covered end should be totally submerged. Hold the clean end with your fingers and make sure the stick doesn’t touch the bottom or the walls of the jar. If it does, crystals will grow between the wood and the glass and good luck trying to get your candy out later. Secure it in place with a clothespin. Repeat this step for the second jar.

• Note: This is why the size of the jar’s opening matters. If it’s too wide, the clothespin will fall into the solution and the chopstick will rest against one of the sides of the jar. You definitely don’t want this. If you can’t find clothespins big enough, you can use two. We even tried tying a piece of yarn to the chopstick and keeping it in place by pulling it tight and securing both ends with the band. Reaching a balance is tricky though, since the chopstick will tend to lean to one side of the yarn, but it’ll do the trick in a pinch.

10. Cover your jars with paper towels. This is just to make sure nothing funky falls into your jar and gets fossilized in the sugar . Fold the paper towel in two and, using scissors, make a small cut in the center to put the chopstick through.

11. Wait. Growing rock candy is a slow process. You’ll start to see some crystals by day two, but they will reach their peak growth after two weeks.

12. Get your candy. Whenever you’re satisfied with the size of your rock candy, feel free to release it. Using a spoon, break the sugar layer on top and move the chopstick around to get it out. If for some reason there are crystals attaching the stick to the jar, an adult can use a knife to chisel it out carefully.

How it works

Water’s ability to dissolve sugar changes with temperature. That’s why if you pour two packets of sugar into a cup of hot tea, the crystals dissolve almost immediately. If you put it in a cup of iced tea, though, some crystals will sink to the bottom.

At room temperature, water is only capable of dissolving around 67 percent of the sugar you pour into it—that specific saturation at that particular temperature is thermodynamic equilibrium.

“When the concentration is less than 67 percent, any crystals you add to the solution will dissolve trying to reach thermodynamic equilibrium,” explains Richard W. Hartel, a food engineering professor in the food science department at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Room-temperature water with a sugar concentration any higher than that makes a supersaturated solution. We need that type of high concentration to grow our crystals. But in order for so little water to dissolve such a large amount of sugar (2.5 cups!) we need to boil the water first.

When the solution cools to room temperature, its sugar concentration will remain the same as when it was boiling—approximately 75 percent. At that point, sugar molecules in the solution will try to reach equilibrium by lowering the concentration to 67 percent. They do this by going back to their original state.

“In liquid form, the sugar molecules have a lot of energy as they bounce around. But when constrained in a crystal lattice, their energy is low,” says Hartel.

The sugar on your chopsticks makes it easier for crystals to grow around them, but (as you’ll see) they’ll also form on the walls of the mason jar and even on the very surface of the solution.

After about two weeks, when the sugar concentration has reached 67 percent, crystals will stop growing and your rock candy will be as big as it can be. Chisel those crystals like you’re unearthing an ancient treasure, and enjoy.

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Rock Candy Science Experiment: A Fun and Edible DIY Project for Kids

By Happy Sharer

Introduction

Rock candy is a type of confectionery made from sugar crystals. It’s an old-fashioned treat that has been around for centuries, and making it is a great way to teach kids about science. Not only is it a fun DIY project, but it’s also an edible science experiment!

In this article, we’ll explore the benefits of a rock candy science experiment, provide a step-by-step guide on how to make it, share a simple recipe with pictures, explain how to set up the experiment, offer tips and tricks for a delicious result, and more. So let’s get started!

What is Rock Candy?

Rock candy is a type of sugar candy made by crystallizing sugar syrup. It can be flavored and colored in various ways, and is often formed into shapes or sticks. The first known recipe for rock candy dates back to 15th century England, and the treat has since become popular all over the world.

According to food historian Peter Opie, rock candy was originally used to sweeten beverages like tea and coffee. It was also used as medicine and to make toothpaste. Today, it’s still enjoyed as a treat, but it’s also used in science experiments to teach kids about the process of crystallization.

Benefits of a Rock Candy Science Experiment

A rock candy science experiment is a great way to introduce kids to the basics of chemistry. It teaches them about the formation of crystals and how different ingredients interact with each other. It also encourages them to observe and record data, which is an important skill for any scientist.

“This activity is a great way to learn about the properties of sugar,” says Dr. Mary Ann Rankin, a professor of chemistry at the University of Maryland. “It’s also a fun and tasty way to explore the concept of crystallization.”

Step-by-Step Guide to Making Rock Candy: A Fun Science Experiment for Kids

Making rock candy is a relatively simple process. All you need is a few basic ingredients, some patience, and a little bit of time. Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to make your own rock candy at home:

Gather Materials

The first step is to gather the materials you’ll need to make your rock candy. You’ll need white granulated sugar, lukewarm water, a glass jar, a wooden skewer, string, and food coloring (optional).

Prepare the Solution

Next, mix the sugar and water together in the glass jar. Stir until the sugar is completely dissolved. If you want to add flavor or color to your rock candy, now is the time to do it. Just add a few drops of food coloring and/or flavoring extract to the solution.

Add Flavoring and Color

At this point, you can add flavorings and colors to your rock candy. Add a few drops of food coloring and/or flavoring extract to the solution and stir until everything is combined. You can also add a few drops of essential oils if you want to give your rock candy a unique aroma.

Suspend the String in the Solution

Once the solution is ready, take the wooden skewer and tie one end of the string around it. Then slowly lower the skewer into the solution until the string is completely submerged. Make sure the string isn’t touching the sides of the jar or the bottom of the jar.

Let the Candy Form

Now it’s time to let the candy form. Place the jar in a warm, dry place and let it sit for several days. As the water evaporates, crystals will begin to form on the string. The longer you let it sit, the bigger the crystals will get.

An Easy Recipe for Making Rock Candy with Pictures

Ready to make your own rock candy? Here’s an easy recipe with pictures:

Ingredients Needed

• 2 cups white granulated sugar
• 1 cup lukewarm water
• Food coloring (optional)
• Flavoring extract (optional)
• 1 glass jar
• 1 wooden skewer
• 1 piece of string

Step-by-Step Instructions

• Mix the sugar and water together in the glass jar. Stir until the sugar is completely dissolved.
• Add a few drops of food coloring and/or flavoring extract to the solution and stir until everything is combined.
• Take the wooden skewer and tie one end of the string around it. Slowly lower the skewer into the solution until the string is completely submerged.
• Place the jar in a warm, dry place and let it sit for several days. As the water evaporates, crystals will begin to form on the string.
• When the crystals are the desired size, carefully remove the string from the jar. Let the rock candy dry before serving.

Rock Candy Science Project: How to Make It With Simple Materials

Making rock candy is a great science project for kids. All you need are a few simple materials and some patience. Here’s how to set up the experiment:

Supplies Needed

• White granulated sugar
• Lukewarm water
• Wooden skewers

Setting Up the Experiment

Start by gathering all the supplies you’ll need. Then mix the sugar and water together in the glass jar. Stir until the sugar is completely dissolved. If you want to add flavor or color to your rock candy, now is the time to do it. Just add a few drops of food coloring and/or flavoring extract to the solution.

Next, take the wooden skewer and tie one end of the string around it. Then slowly lower the skewer into the solution until the string is completely submerged. Make sure the string isn’t touching the sides of the jar or the bottom of the jar.

Observing the Formation of Crystals

Now it’s time to observe the formation of crystals. Place the jar in a warm, dry place and let it sit for several days. As the water evaporates, crystals will begin to form on the string. The longer you let it sit, the bigger the crystals will get.

Rock Candy Making: Tips and Tricks for a Delicious Science Experiment

Making rock candy is a fun and delicious science experiment. Here are a few tips and tricks to help you get the best results:

Choosing the Right Flavor and Color

When adding flavor and color to your rock candy, it’s important to choose the right ones. Natural flavors and colors work best, as they won’t alter the taste or texture of the candy. And if you’re using food coloring, stick to the liquid kind – the gel type won’t dissolve in the solution.

Storing Your Finished Candy

Once your rock candy is finished, it’s important to store it properly. Keep it in an airtight container in a cool, dry place. This will help prevent the candy from melting or becoming stale.

Rock Candy Recipe: A Fun and Edible Science Experiment for Kids

Making rock candy is a fun and delicious way to teach kids about science. It’s a relatively simple process that only requires a few basic ingredients, some patience, and a little bit of time. With our step-by-step guide and easy recipe with pictures, you’ll have no trouble making your own rock candy at home. So why not give it a try today?

From learning about the properties of sugar to observing the formation of crystals, a rock candy science experiment is a great way to introduce kids to the basics of chemistry.

(Note: Is this article not meeting your expectations? Do you have knowledge or insights to share? Unlock new opportunities and expand your reach by joining our authors team. Click Registration to join us and share your expertise with our readers.)

Hi, I'm Happy Sharer and I love sharing interesting and useful knowledge with others. I have a passion for learning and enjoy explaining complex concepts in a simple way.

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How to Make Rock Candy

Homemade rock candy is easy to make! It simply requires a little bit of patience and a whole lot of sugar. Whether you're making the sweet treat to enjoy for dessert or as a science experiment to do with your kids, you'll be amazed at how fun DIY rock candy is.

This post was first published in August 2011, but has been updated with much improved instructions and new photos in 2021.

So, you want to make your own rock candy? Yay! I first wrote this tutorial back in 2011 when I decided I wanted to make rock candy as table decor for my wedding.

Well, let's just say once I attempted actually making rock candy I realized that was not going to happen for several reasons:

• Rock candy requires A LOT of sugar to make. If I wanted 200 sticks of rock candy, it would take about 200 cups of sugar (that's if I re-used each sugar solution one time).
• Rock candy requires time and patience to make. In the quantities I wanted, I should have started making my rock candy at least a year in advance and would have been working on it nearly every day during that time.
• I'd have to live with mason jars of rock candy growing all over my (at the time) tiny apartment.

Needless to say, I did not make rock candy for my wedding.

But 10 years later, I've decided to update this post because my initial rock candy instructions were not that great- I shared my experience with you, but my results weren't ideal.

I've recently started making rock candy again and now have a process down that should work for everyone!

I've also included lots of FAQs that I've received over the years, along with some tips and tricks to make DIY rock candy making easier for you.

What is Rock Candy?

Rock candy is sometimes called "sugar candy" and for good reason! It's actually made completely of large sugar crystals. It often comes in pretty colors and is sold in all kinds of candy stores.

If you've ever made simple syrup before, making rock candy is similar... Except you'll oversaturate the syrup solution (AKA add too much sugar to it) and then let it cool and rest so sugar crystals can form.

Because the solution is supersaturated, that means it can't possibly absorb the sugar at the cooler temperature. Therefore, as the solution cools, it becomes unstable and all the sugar can't stay in the liquid, so it attaches itself to the skewer.

Why Should I Make My Own?

Of course you can easily purchase rock candy in a store or online, but making your own is fun. Whether you want to enjoy it yourself or give it out as gifts, it's easy to do. But if you need it in bulk for wedding decor, you'll want to plan VERY well in advance!

Another reason to make your own rock candy is because it's a great science experiment. You and your kids can learn all about the process of crystallization and different saturations of solutions.

Also, rock candy makes for super fun cocktails (you can also make fun mocktails for your kids)!

In conjunction with making rock candy, you may also want to try making other candies, like homemade fudge and gummy candy. Here's a great guide to sugar chemistry .

How Long Does it Take to Make?

The solution for rock candy is really easy to make and doesn't take long at all. BUT once you make the solution, you need to let it sit for 6-7 days so the crystals can form.

So, yes you need some patience. But it's also fun because you can check on your jars every day to see how your crystals are growing!

Equipment Needed

You may already have everything you need to make your own rock candy as it only requires a couple simple ingredients and a few household items. Here's what you need:

• Granulated Sugar (for 5 sticks of candy, you'll need 10 cups)
• Food coloring (if you want to add color to your candy)
• Mason jars or other receptacles to hold sugar solution. I recommend a standard 16 oz. mason jar .
• Skewers or sticks to make rock candy on. I use a simple wooden kabob skewer . But you can actually buy rock candy sticks to use for a more professional look.
• Clothespins or chip clips to balance stick on jar (you can't let the stick touch the bottom of the jar).

This "recipe" will make 5 sticks of rock candy. Since the candy will all grow in separate jars, you can make a variety of colors with this one recipe. I like to keep at least one jar clear as it's the easiest to be able to monitor growth!

To start, you need to coat your skewers or sticks in granulated sugar. The purpose of this is to "seed" the rock candy and give the crystals something to adhere to as they start to grow.

I trim my skewers a bit before using them since they're pretty long and have a pointy sharp end.

Submerge the skewers in water, coat them in sugar, and then set out to dry.

I like to do this a day ahead of time, but as long as you let them dry for an hour, they should be fine.

The next step is to prep your jars so that the process is easy once you make your sugar solution.

Make sure your jars are clean and not cold (I recommend running hot water through them before using). Attach a clothespin or chip clip to each skewer and then balance over the top of jars.

Be sure your skewer is hanging about an inch from the bottom of the jar as the rock candy crystals will stick to the bottom of the jar and will make it tough to remove skewers.

Set it all up, but then take the skewer out of the jar- you'll add it back in once your sugar solution is in.

Now it's time to make the sugar solution. Add 4 cups of water to a large saucepan. Bring to a boil and then start adding sugar in one cup at a time, stirring with a wooden spoon and letting each cup fully dissolve before adding the next.

You'll notice it becomes harder and harder for the sugar to dissolve as you add more in and the sugar will start to clump before dissolving, like this:

That means your solution is supersaturated and you should have no problem growing crystals. Woo hoo!

Once your final cup of sugar has been dissolved, let mixture simmer for about 5 minutes before removing from heat.

Remove the saucepan from the heat and let the mixture rest for about 15 minutes.

Now, divide the mixture between your 5 prepared jars. And stir in your food coloring at this time.

I highly recommend bringing your jars to where they'll be resting for the next 6-7 days before you place the skewer in the jar. Be sure to use caution when moving the jars as they will be very, very hot.

Once the jars are in their resting spots, place prepared skewers into solution. You'll want to try your best not to move jars around much once skewers are in place.

Now comes the tough part... Waiting for your rock candy to grow!

Luckily, things will start happening fairly quickly and you should see crystals starting to grow on your sticks within a day. Here's how mine looked after 24 hours:

Here they are after 48 hours:

And here they are after 72 hours:

You can remove the skewers from the jars whenever you want, but I recommend giving them at least 6 days to fully form.

When you're ready to remove rock candy sticks from jars, use your finger to gently crack the hardened sugar on top of the jar and gently wiggle the stick to release. Like this:

Let the syrup drizzle from stick. I recommend setting the candy over an empty jar or bowl to let it drip or placing it on a paper towel.

Then you're ready to enjoy your incredible homemade rock candy!

How cool is that??

Can I Re-Use Sugar Solution?

I got a lot of questions about this on my previous post, so I decided to do a little experimenting this time around.

Once you take the sticks out of your jars, you'll likely feel wasteful pouring the rest of the sugar solution in the trash. So, can you re-use it? The short answer is yes!

But before you just plop another sugar-coated stick in the solution, I recommend that you pour it back into a saucepan and bring it back to a boil. Add another ¼ cup sugar in it and let it simmer for a few minutes. Then pour it back in the jar.

I re-used a couple of my solutions without re-heating and adding more sugar to the solution and here's how they came out after a week:

Here's what happened when I did re-heat and add an additional ¼ cup sugar:

That's some definite proof that you'll want to re-boil the solution and add more sugar!

Why Isn't My Rock Candy Growing?

Great question! Making rock candy can be a bit finicky and there are lots of reasons it may not work on your first try. However, if you follow these instructions closely and use the full 10 cups of sugar in 4 cups of water, you should have a supersaturated solution and your chances of it working are high.

If your sticks don't seem to have crystals growing at all after a few days, it may because your sugar solution wasn't oversaturated for whatever reason. In that case, you can put the mixture back into the saucepan, bring it to a boil and add in another cup of sugar. Stir to dissolve. Add more sugar in if the first cup dissolved easily.

You'll want to use new sugar-coated skewers, too.

I went through this process the first time I made rock candy and had a fail and it definitely seemed to help as crystals started growing after I did it.

Also be sure to double-check that your jars are clean and not cold and that you didn't move your jars around once you added the stick in.

How Can I Make Rock Candy Fast?

Unfortunately, there isn't really a way to make rock candy grow quickly. I have heard that putting the jars in the fridge will speed up the process a bit, but I haven't tried this myself.

You can take your rock candy out of the jar after just a couple days, but your sticks will probably be a bit sparse.

How to Store Candy

Store your rock candy in a cool dry place. If you're planning on keeping it for a while or giving it as gifts, I recommend wrapping them in cellophane wrappers, like these .

When stored properly, your rock candy should stay good for a year.

Helpful Tip & Tricks

Once you have the process down and understand the science behind it, making your own rock candy is super simple! But I do have some tips and tricks that should help you troubleshoot if you're having problems:

• Make sure your mason jars are completely clean and not cold. I store a lot of my mason jars in my basement (which is chilly), so I always clean them out with hot water before using them.
• Do not skip the step of coating your sticks in sugar. It's very important that the crystals have something to adhere to as they grow (otherwise they'll likely just grow to the bottom of the jar).
• I recommend using a concentrated food coloring or gel to ensure that you can add enough color without adding too much liquid to the solution. These are my favorite colors (they're not gel, but are very saturated).
• I recommend making the color a bit darker than you think you should as it will look lighter once the crystals form.
• You can add flavoring to the rock candy if you want, but similarly to using food coloring, try to use a concentrated flavoring so you don't have to add too much liquid to get the flavor level you want.
• Once you've poured your sugar mixture and placed your sticks in the jars, take care not to move them or jostle the sticks.

As you can see, DIY rock candy is pretty easy to make as long as long as you understand the process. It mostly just requires patience... And a whole lot of sugar!

After making rock candy at home, I have a whole new appreciation for the candy and can certainly understand why a company may charge top dollar for it (though I'm sure the use of machinery makes it much easier!).

Don't forget to check out my recipe for rock candy cocktails if you're looking for a fun way to utilize your candy!

Have you ever made your own rock candy at home?

DIY Rock Candy

Ingredients.

• 5 wooden skewers
• 5 mason jars (I recommend 16 oz)
• 5 clothespins or chip clips
• 4 cups water
• 10 cups granulated sugar, plus more for coating skewers
• Food coloring

Instructions

• Submerge skewers in water, coat them in sugar, and then set out to dry. I like to do this a day ahead of time, but as long as you let them dry for an hour, they should be fine.
• Make sure your jars are clean and not cold (run hot water through them if necessary). Attach a clothespin or chip clip to the top of each skewer and then balance over the top of jars. Be sure your skewer is hanging about an inch from the bottom of the jar as the rock candy crystals will stick to the bottom of the jar and will make it tough to remove skewers.
• In a large saucepan, bring water to a boil. Add sugar in one cup at a time, stirring with a wooden spoon and letting each cup fully dissolve before adding the next. You'll notice it becomes harder and harder for the sugar to dissolve as you add more in.
• Once your final cup of sugar has been dissolved, let mixture simmer for about 5 minutes before removing from heat. Let mixture rest off the heat for about 15 minutes.
• Divide sugar solution amongst the 5 prepared jars. Stir in food coloring at this time. I recommend bringing your jars to where they'll be resting for the next 6-7 days at this time. Be sure to use caution as the jars will be very hot. Once they're in their resting spots, place prepared skewers into solution. You'll want to try your best not to move jars around much once skewers are in place.
• You'll likely see little crystals forming within hours, but you'll want to let the jars rest for 6-7 days to let sugar crystals fully form.
• When ready to remove rock candy sticks from jars, use your finger or a fork to gently crack the hardened sugar on top of the jar and gently wiggle the stick to release. Let solution drizzle from stick (I recommend setting the candy over an empty jar or bowl to let it drip) before enjoying the candy.
• If you want to re-use the sugar solution to make more rock candy, pour solution into saucepan and bring to a boil (you can add any sugar crystals that have already formed, but if you can't get them all, simply clean them out of the jar before re-using). Add in an additional ¼ cup of sugar and let simmer for a couple minutes. Remove from heat and let cool for 10 minutes before pouring into a clean jar.

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Reader Interactions

Kate Deeks says

August 17, 2011 at 7:50 pm

Ha! I loved the rock-candy camera setting. Would love to make crystals, but not so interested in the candy eating. Sounds like a fun experiment.

vanillasugarblog says

August 17, 2011 at 7:53 pm

remember as a kid how much we loved having these? i was horrid at making caramel until I finally got a good thermo and MADE myself set up camp at the stove to babysit the caramel.

lynn @ the actor's diet says

August 17, 2011 at 7:55 pm

i remember them making this (and peanut brittle) in science class. i was so jealous of those kids!

August 17, 2011 at 8:41 pm

Rock candy is so pretty! I made it once when I was a kid and a trail of ants found their way to it from under my back door.

August 17, 2011 at 8:43 pm

sue, this is very pretty, it's a piece of art. just like clusters of crystals !! It's amazing to know just by boiling sugar syrup can form into these. oh, just voted for your site. Have a happy day!

August 17, 2011 at 9:25 pm

wedding rock candy...what a cute idea! you could have jars of rock candy forming all over your house haha 🙂

August 17, 2011 at 9:26 pm

I only have about 65 peeps coming to my wedding. I might be able to make this happen! Thanks for the inspiration!!!

August 17, 2011 at 9:34 pm

Congrats! I will go vote now! I had no idea making rock candy was such a process! The results are so pretty! I def do not have the patience

August 17, 2011 at 10:56 pm

Hi Susie! You and Chris looked like you at least enjoyed making these! And they are so pretty. I just voted for your website, and will return tomorrow to do it again!!

Lauren at Keep It Sweet says

August 18, 2011 at 7:10 am

OMG, so much fun! This would completely make me feel like a kid:-)

Joanne says

August 18, 2011 at 7:26 am

Wow who knew that making rock candy was such an ordeal! But totally worth it for a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

Jenn's Food Journey says

August 18, 2011 at 8:45 am

I made rock candy once when I was about 12!! lol Your post brings back great memories of that!! And they look beautiful 🙂 Congrats on being nominated.. I'm going to vote for your ladies right now!

newlywed says

August 18, 2011 at 10:01 am

Well, it sure looks great! I had DIY-fever for my wedding too. Then I woke up one day and remembered how much I hate crafts. And bought everything. Except for the favors, which I cooked with my mom...because at least I like cooking!

Emily @ A Cambridge Story says

August 18, 2011 at 10:07 am

You definitely make this look easy - who knew that rock candy had to "grow". It probably is a little untenable for homemade wedding favors but I'm really impressed that you did this!

Erica @ In and Around Town says

August 18, 2011 at 10:46 am

Totally did this in 3rd grade science, but think I need to do this again! So much fun 🙂 Congrats on the nomination!

August 18, 2011 at 11:03 am

I think your photos look great! Also, it was interesting to read about your experience making rock candy, I didn't realize it was such a simple process, but with such varied results! Very cool.

August 18, 2011 at 11:08 am

I just bought Sugarbaby and have been planning to try the rock candy recipe just for fun. There's a suggestion in there to use toothpicks and make mini rock candy... which could speed things up if you haven't completely given up on making your own for your wedding.

August 18, 2011 at 12:31 pm

Yumm! I never successfully made rock candy as a child, not convinced I'd be too good at it as an adult either though... haha

Michelle Collins says

August 18, 2011 at 1:30 pm

Congrats on the nomination!

CookiePie says

August 18, 2011 at 1:55 pm

WOW - homemade rock candy - that is amazing! For your wedding, you can show everyone the pictures of your beautiful rock candy 🙂

5 Star Foodie says

August 18, 2011 at 8:34 pm

How fun to make this at home, very neat!

Shannon says

August 19, 2011 at 12:12 pm

how fun!! that is awesome 🙂

Andrea Kazilionis says

August 19, 2011 at 8:26 pm

So excited about this post! I can't wait to try this kitchen science project and enjoy the delicious outcome...!

Kerstin says

August 21, 2011 at 11:34 pm

What a fun post - I had no idea how to make rock candy! Great wedding favor idea too 🙂

August 22, 2011 at 3:49 pm

Looks great! Can't imagine making 200 of those! Man, that is a lot of sugar for so few sticks!!

Elina (Healthy and Sane) says

August 25, 2011 at 5:36 pm

Obviously you're not going to make these for the wedding but at least you now know how to make them (I love discovering such things). Awesome little project! 🙂

Rozzie says

August 31, 2011 at 4:06 pm

Wonderful post! Great to see the photos in progress and your commentary was awesome. Thanks for sharing.

Dorcas says

September 24, 2011 at 3:04 pm

Ironically I had actually planned on trying this tomorrow. Last night I was looking something else up in my Joy of Cooking and thought it'd be really cool to try. I'm so glad I saw your blog because I'm going to do more investigating before I begin. My book says to take a disposable square 8" aluminum pan, punch 7-8 holes 1/2" up on two opposite sides. Then lace string back and forth. Then you pour sugar mixture (boiled to 250- hard ball stage) over string. String will be immersed. Then cover pan & leave undisturbed 36-48 hours at least. Then wait some more until it's all crystalized. Cut strings and lift it out of pan. (I guess it's solid now - idk) put on baking sheet in 200 degree oven to dry. Says to use strings as decoration or knock crystals off. Store in air tight container at room temp. Usage idea- pile crystals high in bowl at party for fancy sugar for coffee. I didn't copy recipe here. Just gave you the highlights. As you can imagine I now have a headache. Lol. You used 3.5 cups of sugar. Mine is 2.5 cups sugar, 1cup water and a pinch of Cream of Tartar.

simone says

October 28, 2011 at 9:58 am

Featured you in our Food Trends article this week! Looks delicious and gorgeous.

November 13, 2011 at 8:21 pm

I have had varied luck over the last few years, making rock candy. Like yours, some stuck to the stick, some turned to a huge blob in the bottom of the jar. Luckily for me, I was making them to tie onto Christmas packages, and not for a wedding, or the pressure would have gotten to me! I ordered candy flavorings, and added it to my sugar solutions. Then co-ordinated it with the color-mint or irish cream went with green, for example. These were made to use for stirring coffee, sweetening it, and giving it some specialty flavors! A great gift in itself. If you have serious coffee drinkers on your list!

Charles says

November 19, 2011 at 12:47 pm

my took 4 months...for one crystal to grow on it (:

Charlie says

December 04, 2011 at 9:52 pm

This would be a great Girl Scout troop project!

MYT CR8TiV says

March 06, 2012 at 10:22 pm

I made these in Science class when I was a kid. We used Hard Candy Flavoring drops to enhance the taste. You could use those so it doesn't just taste like bland crystallized sugar.

May 02, 2012 at 11:11 pm

I just had to do a chemistry experiment dealing with recrystalization. We did the same process of boiling the water and sugar to supersaturate it, after it was completely mixed we placed the beaker in an ice bath and the crystals automatically formed. I wonder if that process would work to speed up the rock candy process.

Dakota says

June 25, 2012 at 6:25 pm

Thanks, this'll be great to try! I heard that you can flavor them with flavoring oil/extract, im not sure if I could stand pure sugar on a stick. 🙂

August 09, 2012 at 1:15 pm

I loveee this site! I'm using rock candy in my wedding too, Purple and White Rock Candy in a vase to make a "bouquet". I've searched online for some to buy, but it is kind of expenses so I thought I would try to make my own. Sounds easy, right? HA! 🙂

Jacob Crim says

October 19, 2012 at 10:34 am

Could I pour the liquid into a baking sheet then break it up once its dried? I am trying to make "blue meth" like in Breaking Bad for my Halloween costume.

October 20, 2012 at 10:40 am

@Jacob- You could try! As you saw, making this wasn't exactly easy for me... So I'd try a few batches now and hopefully one will be ready in time 🙂

A.L. Designs Jewelry says

December 12, 2012 at 8:54 am

Look so fun and yummy 🙂

January 19, 2013 at 3:25 pm

Just a thought in candy making. I was always told to making candy on sunny days. Candy wont set up if not. I know this is true for fudge, and would make sense for this as well.

VinPro elegance says

May 09, 2013 at 9:28 pm

Thanks!!Thanks, great to try!

Fattaneh says

September 26, 2013 at 12:31 am

Thanks for sharing your experience! I'm gonna try it and I hope the result is good.

November 19, 2014 at 9:51 pm

These are awesome. I think imperfection looks more beautiful. Cant wait to do this with my daughter.

Gourmet Candy says

December 29, 2014 at 1:34 pm

I really liked the rock candy and you should also go to this site they got some pretty good candy here too http://www.myidolpops.com/

Heather says

October 24, 2015 at 8:02 pm

Well I am really glad I read this. I have been attempting to make rock candy for a baby shower. I have watched countless videos. Everyone makes it look so easy. For some reason the sugar I bought never seems to get clear. I stir and stir and stir. By the time it comes to a boil and I pour it into the jars within an hour its like a solid hard clump. I have three weeks to complete this task lol. I will not give up 😉

November 28, 2015 at 1:17 pm

I heard to dip skewers in the liquid solution and roll them in sugar before putting them in the jar. The sugar will crystallize on the other crystals.

Erica Watson says

January 12, 2016 at 12:39 am

I was wondering how did you make rock candy .now I know how to make it me and my grandkids can make that on family night

July 02, 2016 at 9:03 am

This is truly amazing!!!!!! The only thing I don't like is that it won't let me see the ingredients

July 02, 2016 at 9:04 am

This is truly amazing!!!!

kaidadraco says

February 14, 2017 at 2:05 pm

best thing ever! XD

Zareena says

April 09, 2017 at 10:27 pm

Hmm...i wonder if the sugar will stick on a heart shaped-wire? We can make a heart rock candy for Valentine's day! ??

April 19, 2017 at 2:55 pm

@Zareena Definitely worth a try! It wasn't the easiest to make, but maybe I'll try again soon since it's been many years since my first attempt 🙂

Shannon B says

July 02, 2021 at 11:02 am

Olivia Michaels says

August 29, 2021 at 11:44 am

Britney D McClenney says

November 27, 2021 at 1:39 pm

I was wondering if we could use Kool aid packets as the flavor and color for the rock candy?

November 27, 2021 at 5:12 pm

Hi Britney! I haven't tried this, but I do think it will work. The added sugar from Kool Aid should be fine and the color and flavor would work well!

Dorcas Berthold says

December 05, 2021 at 5:12 am

December 08, 2021 at 7:57 am

someone says

February 08, 2022 at 3:37 pm

Katrina says

February 11, 2022 at 10:46 pm

Karley says

March 20, 2022 at 5:28 pm

To redo it, it is per jar? Like do 1 jar at a time or do you add them all back in and then put the 1/4 cup of sugar?

March 24, 2022 at 10:16 pm

@Karley- It's per jar. If they're all the same color and flavor, you could do them all together, but still add 1/4 cup per jar. It seems like a lot, but the crystals need a lot to grow!

Allison says

May 26, 2022 at 1:41 pm

I tried this but the whole jar turned into wet but fairly solid granular sugar the first day - did I add too much sugar?! I was halving the recipe so maybe I messed up…

May 26, 2022 at 2:38 pm

Hi Allison! I haven't heard of this happening, but it could be that you used too much sugar and/or you didn't boil it long enough. Generally, if you "oversaturate" the solution with too much sugar, the extra sugar will just chill at the bottom of the jar as it cools, but if there was a lot of it, I could see how it could start hardening in the bottom of the jar and on the sides fairly quickly. Let me know if you try again!

May 31, 2022 at 7:31 pm

I did it exactly like the recipe said and I'm 4 days in and not one Crystal it hasn't done anything

June 02, 2022 at 11:38 am

Hi Erica! Unfortunately, rock candy can be VERY finicky and though I've made rock candy tons of times, I've even had issues with it before. There are SO many factors that can effect growth. It IS odd you didn't have any crystal growth at all, so I wonder if enough sugar was added and if it was dissolved into the water all the way. Sometimes rock candy doesn't grow perfectly on the stick or string, but with enough sugar properly dissolved, there should at least be SOME crystal growth in the jar. Let me know if it progressed at all or if you need any further help trouble shooting!

June 07, 2022 at 9:37 pm

August 20, 2022 at 2:43 pm

Hello! Science teacher here. Was planning to try this with my chemistry class but our classes are only 50 minutes long. Can I make the sugar solution early, like at home before school and bring it in and it still work? They are my 4th period class. Can I make at home then microwave to liven up the sugar before class?? Thanks for your help!

August 20, 2022 at 3:07 pm

Hi Cindy! With 50 minutes, I think you should have enough time to do the project in class... It may take 30-40 minutes to dissolve all the sugar into the water (but can be faster if you can get the water boiling before class starts!). Then it can just be poured into the prepared jars... it will take close to a week for rock candy to fully form, but will be fun to check in on every day to see the crystals forming! However, if you want to do it ahead of time, I think you could prepare the sugar saturated solution and then re-heat in class, but you may need to add a little more sugar when re-heating as sugar crystals may already be starting to form as it's cooled. But this should definitely work as I've re-used the solution leftover in jars to make more rock candy with no problem. Let me know how it goes!

December 22, 2022 at 11:31 am

Hi Sue, I use to work in a coffee shop and we kept flavored sugars. A vanilla bean in the sugar for vanilla, etc. I wonder if you couldn't flavor the sugar before hand instead of adding a concentrate to it. Norma

December 22, 2022 at 2:35 pm

Hi Norma- I think that's a great idea!

March 28, 2023 at 11:15 am

Loved the directions with pictures! Just wondering, if you could put two sticks in at once, on opposite sides of the jar?

March 28, 2023 at 12:09 pm

Hi KC! I haven't tried using 2 sticks at once, but as long as your jars are wide mouth jars, you should be able to do this!

Marlene Pollitt says

May 10, 2023 at 10:53 pm

Melissa E says

June 07, 2023 at 5:39 pm

June 09, 2023 at 12:39 pm

Hi Melissa! Yes, I use pint jars for my rock candy. How much extract you use will depend on how strong you like the flavor, but I'd say a teaspoon should work. You shouldn't need to ad more sugar for that small amount of extract. If you ad the extract in while the mixture is still boiling, it will burn the alcohol off. And how much food coloring really depends on the type you're using- I recommend using a concentrated food coloring and you'll only need a few drops. I hope that's helpful!!

Brenda says

June 09, 2023 at 6:27 pm

Hello, I made my first batch and they turned out wonderful. Second batch, not so much. Third batch, well, what I got was sugar slushies and big clumps of sugar stuck to the bottom of the jars. Obviously I’m an idiot. What can I do to save my starter if I can save it? I need help. That’s a lot of sugar to just discard.

June 11, 2023 at 4:28 pm

Hi Brenda- Yes, I have some advice on this in my post! You can even re-use the solution if your rock candy grows. Just pour it back into a saucepan and bring to a boil- you will want to add some more sugar. Let me know how it goes!

November 17, 2023 at 10:24 pm

Would it be ok to cover the jar with aluminum foil, to keep dust from getting inside? Or do they need to be left open so water can evaporate? I wouldn't be pressing the foil around the sides tightly, just kinda loosely covering it. Our house became super dusty all of a sudden after my brother moved in & nothing seems to help keep it at bay🤢 I like the idea of reusing the left over solution after the first sticks are finished, but without covering the jars I'd feel too disgusted to do so.

BTW, here's a tip to get bigger crystals... Supposedly the slower the solution cools, the bigger the crystals will turn out... So maybe it'd be helpful to wrap the jars in foil or use a thermos type container to make the candies in? Only prob with the thermos-you couldn't see the progress until you removed the stick. I'm sure you guys can come up with plenty of ways to try and slow down the cooling process. It actually makes sense that the quicker the solution cools the smaller the crystals would be, since "heat" is just a term for how fast particles are moving.

November 18, 2023 at 12:05 am

Hi Heather- Yes! As long as you're not totally sealing the foil around the jars, I think it would be perfectly fine to loosely cover them. Just make sure some air can still circulate.

And yes, I bet wrapping the jars in foil or towels could help slow the cooling down a bit- great idea!!

Kendyl says

January 12, 2024 at 3:49 pm

January 20, 2024 at 6:41 pm

January 21, 2024 at 9:20 pm

Hi Kat- I'm really sorry to hear that! Like I mention, making rock candy is an extremely finicky process and many factors can determine the outcome. Generally if your whole jar crystalizes, this is due to the jar being moved or disturbed too much or from temperature fluctuations after your solution is in the jar (like if the room is warm during the day and then the temperature drops at night). It can also happen if some sort of debris getting into the jar. All of the same factors can create "cotton candy" or "fluffy" looking candy, so I am thinking one of those things may have created the issues. I hope that's helpful! I know it's frustrating when experiments don't work after spending so much time on them (and rock candy takes SO much time), but I hope you'll try again at some point because lots of people have had success with this "recipe!"

February 25, 2024 at 5:38 pm

April 09, 2024 at 4:39 pm

April 10, 2024 at 10:07 pm

Hi Tes! I haven't tried doing more than 1 in a jar, but I think as long as your jars are large enough (I recommend wide mouth jars), you should be able to do this. Just make sure there is enough space in between the sticks for rock candy to grow. Let me know how it goes!

April 11, 2024 at 7:17 pm

April 17, 2024 at 9:38 am

Hi Heather- Yes, you should be able to do this with fewer jars/sticks!

May 20, 2024 at 5:22 pm

If i were to take a rock candy out and put it into a different dye solution would it continue to grow fine so that i get a multi colored rock candy?

May 23, 2024 at 11:51 am

Hi Luke- I haven't tried this, but I do think it should work!

July 29, 2024 at 10:26 pm

I remember trying to make rock candy as a kid. All I remember is it didn't turn out well. lol I tried making this around a yr ago and was so excited that my turned out looking exactly like the ones you buy at the store😃 It took quite a bit longer than a week for enough crystals to form to get to that point tho. I was planning on using the left over syrup to make more, but my idiot brother knocked over the jar, spilling it everywhere! You def don't want that to happen! obv it was an awful sticky mess to clean up!

August 24, 2024 at 3:31 pm

Any tips on storing the crystals? I’m actually wanting to make the crystals for a geode cake and wasn’t sure if these would stick together in a bowl. Thanks

August 27, 2024 at 12:12 pm

Hi Tina! I recommend storing the crystals in an airtight container in a cool, dry spot (not in the fridge). Make sure the crystals are dry before storing and you might want to layer waxed paper in between the candy. I hope this helps and that your cake comes out great!!

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Science News Explores

Rock candy science 2: no such thing as too much sugar.

Here’s why you need so much sugar to make rock candy

Making rock candy at home takes a lot of sugar. How much? I did an experiment to find out.

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• Google Classroom

By Bethany Brookshire

April 30, 2020 at 6:30 am

This article is one of a series of  Experiments  meant to teach students about how science is done, from generating a hypothesis to designing an experiment to analyzing the results with statistics. You can repeat the steps here and compare your results — or use this as inspiration to design your own experiment.

Making rock candy at home requires just two ingredients — water and sugar. A lot of sugar, as I found out when I ran a rock candy experiment  in 2018 (and ran out of the sweet stuff). Most recipes recommend using about three times as much sugar as water. That’s so much, it seems like a waste. To see if I could get away with less, I ran another experiment.

Spoiler: Less sugar is not  the answer.

In my previous experiment, I showed that seed crystals are very important for creating rock candy. Putting a few grains of sugar on a stick or string promotes the formation of bigger crystals. This speeds up the candy-making.

I had calculated that to make enough rock candy for that experiment, I would need to fill 52 plastic cups with a sugar solution. But the candy recipe used more sugar than I was expecting and I quickly ran out. That’s because the recipe required one kilogram (8 cups) of sugar for every 300 grams (2.7 cups) of water. That’s a sugar-to-water ratio of 3:1. In the end, I had to run my experiment with only 18 plastic cups.

It all worked out in the end and I was able to test my hypothesis. But I wondered if I could have used less sugar and more water. To find out, another experiment was in order.

Super-saturated sugar

Making rock candy starts with dissolving sugar in water. The recipe’s ratio of sugar to water is so high, though, that the sugar won’t dissolve without some help. No matter how much I stir, there’s just too much sugar.

That changes when the water temperature increases. As water heats up, individual water molecules move faster and faster. Those speedy molecules can more easily break up the sugar crystals that had been dumped into the water. Soon, all the sugar dissolves in the water and the water turns clear.

This solution isn’t stable, however. It’s a super-saturated solution. The water contains more sugar than it can hold at room temperature. As the water cools, then, the sugar slowly precipitates out — becoming solid again. If the sugar crystals have something to attach to — such as a stick or piece of string with a little bit of sugar already on it — they will tend to attach there. Over time, enough sugar crystals cling together to make a chunk of rock candy.

But how super-saturated does my solution need to be to make rock candy? To figure this out, I’ll start with a statement that I can test — a hypothesis. My hypothesis is that using  a lower ratio of sugar to water in my solution will produce less rock candy than a mixture with a high-sugar concentration .

Cooking candy

To test this hypothesis, I made three batches of rock candy. The first batch is my control — the original rock candy recipe with a 3:1 ratio of sugar to water, a super-saturated solution. A second batch used a sugar-to water ratio of 1:1. That solution is saturated — the sugar goes into solution with stirring and maybe a little heat. The third group has a solution with a sugar-to-water ratio of 0.33:1. This solution is not saturated; the sugar dissolves into the water at room temperature.

I can’t make only one piece of rock candy for each test condition. I need to repeat my experiment and make enough rock candy to detect a difference between the three groups. For this experiment, that meant cooking up 12 batches of rock candy for each group.

I have made rock candy  for an experiment before. This time, I made a few changes:  

• Measure out and cut 36 clean pieces of string. Make sure there is enough string to tie around a stick above the cup, while still leaving string to dangle into the sugar solution.
• Dip one end of the string 12.7 centimeters (5 inches) into a cup of clean water, then roll it in a small pile of sugar. Set aside to dry.
• Set out 36 plastic or glass cups.
• For your 3:1 solution, mix 512 grams (4 cups) of water and 1.5 kilograms (12 cups) of sugar. I made two batches, which ended up using about 8 cups of water and 24 cups of sugar in total.
• For the 1:1 solution, add equal amounts of sugar and water to the pot and bring to a boil. So for 12 cups of water, you would need 12 cups of sugar.
• For the 0.33:1 solution, 15 cups of water and 5 cups of sugar should be plenty.  
• Once the solution is clear, add food coloring to get a desired color. I used red for my 3:1 solution, green for my 1:1 solution and blue for my 0.33:1 solution.
• If your solution is hot, you may want to wait a few minutes before pouring it into the cups. If the cups are thin, cheap plastic, the hot liquid might make them melt and sag. (This happened to me; my red cups were sad and saggy at the bottom.)
• Using a measuring cup, pour 300 milliliters (10 fluid ounces, a little more than a cup) of the solution into each cup. You may need to make another batch or two of each solution until you have enough to fill all 12 cups in each group.
• Weigh each string before you dip it into the solution. Use a scale to find the mass of each string in grams (each of mine weighed about one gram). Once you have noted the mass, dip the stick carefully into a cup of the sugar solution, then secure it in place. Make sure the string does not touch the bottom or sides of the cup. I tied each string to a wooden skewer placed across several cups.
• Put all the cups in a cool, dry place where they will not be disturbed.
• Wait. How long? You will start to see sugar crystals form after a day or so. But if you want candy to eat, you’ll want to wait at least five days.

At the end of the experiment, get out the scale again. Pull each string out of its cup, make sure it’s not dripping, and weigh it a second time. Should you eat it? Maybe not.

Have your data and eat it too?

To find out how much rock candy you made in each group, subtract the weight of each string at the beginning of the experiment from the weight of the candy-coated string. That will tell you how many grams of sugar crystals had grown.

At the end of my five-day experiment, I created a spreadsheet of my results, with each group getting its own column. At the bottom, I calculated the mean — the average crystal growth — for each group.

My super-saturated control group grew 10.5 grams of candy on average. The candy looked pink and tasty. But my other groups grew on average — zero grams of candy. They looked like soggy blue or green pieces of string. Some of the cups even grew mold. (Gross. Don’t eat those.)

Were the three groups different from each other? It certainly seemed like the super-saturated group was different. But to be sure, I needed to run some statistics — tests that will interpret my findings.

The first test I did was an analysis of variance , or ANOVA. This test is used to compare the means of three or more groups. There are free calculators that will run this test for you online. I used the one at Good Calculators .

This test gives you two outcomes, an F-stat and a p value. An F-stat is a number that tells you if three or more groups are different from each other. The higher the F-stat, the more likely it is that the groups are different from each other in some way. My F-stat was 42.8. That’s very large; there’s a big difference between those three groups.

The p value is a measure of probability. It measures how likely it is that I would find by accident alone a differences between my three groups that was at least as big as the one I report. A p value of less than 0.05 (or five percent) is considered by many scientists to be statistically “significant.” The p value I got from Good Calculators was so small it was reported as 0. There’s a 0 percent chance that I would see a difference this large by accident.

But these are just numbers that report a difference between the three groups. They don’t tell me where the difference is. Is it between the control group and the 0.33:1 group? The 1:1 group and the 0.33:1 group? Both? Neither? I have no idea.

To learn, I need to run another test. This test is called a post-hoc test — one that lets me further analyze my data. Post-hoc tests should only be used when you have a significant result to analyze.

There are many kinds of post-hoc tests. I used Tukey’s range test. It will compare all the means between all the groups. So it will compare the 3:1 ratio against the 1:1, then 3:1 to 0.33 to 1, and finally 1:1 to 0.33 to 1. For each, the Tukey’s range test gives a p value.

My Tukey’s range test showed that the 3:1 control group was significantly different from the 1:1 (a p value of 0.01, a one percent chance of a difference). The 3:1 group was also significantly different from the 0.33:1 (a p value of 0.01). But the 1:1 and 0.33:1 groups were not different from each other (which you would expect, since both of them averaged zero crystal growth). I made a graph to show my results.

This experiment seems pretty clear: If you want rock candy, you need a lot of sugar. The super-saturated solution is a must so that the sugar can crystallize out onto your string.

But there are always things that a scientist can do better in any study. For example, I had three groups with different amounts of sugar in the water. But another good control — a group where nothing changes — would be one with no sugar in the water at all.  The next time I want to make myself some candy, I’ve got another experiment to do.

Materials List

Granulated sugar (6 bags, $6.36 each) Grill skewers (pack of 100, $4.99) Clear plastic cups (pack of 100, $6.17) String ($2.84) Large pot (4 quarts, $11.99) Measuring cups ($7.46) Scotch tape ($1.99) Food coloring ($3.66) Roll of paper towels ($0.98) Nitrile or latex gloves ($4.24) Small digital scale ($11.85)

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How to Make Rock Candy on a Stick

This fun science project for kids is easy to set up with sugar, skewers, and a few kitchen tools.

How to make Rock Candy on a Stick

We’ve been making rock candy, and in the true spirit of experimentation we made three batches (and hope that we finally got it right!). There are so many ways to get this confection started, and I’ll share a few thoughts and links for those of you who might want to give it a try. The thing about rock candy that appealed to me is that the ingredients are simple, and I already had them all on hand (Yipee!).

Rock Candy: Ingredient List

adapted from Rock Candy Recipes via The Exploratorium and Science Bob

• 2+ cups sugar
• 1 cup white sugar
• wooden spoon
• clean, narrow jar/s or glass/es
• wooden skewers
• clothes pins
• candy thermometer or digital thermometer that reaches 240 degrees F
• food coloring (optional)
• vanilla extract or other flavoring (optional)

At least 3 hours ahead of time:

Snip the ends off your skewers so they’re not sharp. Dip the ends of the skewers into a simple syrup mixture (sugar + water, 2 sugar: 1 water, cooked until the sugar dissolves) and then roll the skewers in sugar. Set aside on wax paper until dry. This might not take long at all, but we gave it three hours. If you don’t have skewers, you could use the string method (see photo below). The skewer or string act as a “seed” that attracts the cooling sugar to adhere to it.

(String method: Dip your cotton string in the sugar solution, roll it in sugar, and allow it to completely dry. This could take 24+ hours.)

Steps: Rock Candy with Kids

I don’t normally allow my daughter to cook boiling hot things at the stove (do you?), but she begged me to get involved and she did a great job! What are your thoughts on this? Any tips for kitchen safety that also allow for kids to fully participate?

• Boil 1 cup water in a small saucepan
• Slowly add 2 cups of sugar and mix with a wooden spoon until sugar dissolves
• Cook sugar solution until it’s 240 degrees F (also known as the soft ball stage in candy making). Some rocky candy recipes say to simply boil the solution until the sugar dissolves. I tried this and it didn’t work for me, but let me know if it works for you!
• Remove from the heat

• Add food coloring. Be generous.
• Add flavor (we made one batch with pure vanilla extract and another with real lemon extract). We added about 1 tbsp. lemon, and 1/2 tsp vanilla.

• Dangle sugar-covered skewer into sugar solution so that it’s about 2/3 of the way down the jar.
• Attach a clothespin to the top to keep it in place. We put 2-3 skewers in the jars. I wonder if this will be too crowded to work?

And now we wait. Somewhere between 3 and 7 days!! Already feeling impatient, but I’m sure it’ll be worth it! Sugar will form on the surface, and I’ve read that you can scoop it out and enjoy it while waiting for the rock candy to form. https://buyiglikesfast.com/buy-instagram-likes/

Well, the truth is that we couldn’t really wait 🙂 Before washing the pot, we coated a few spoons with the hot candy. And as soon as they cooled, we were treated to homemade vanilla and lemon lollipops!

More Science Projects for Kids

If you enjoyed this project, you’ll love this article: Science Fair Project Ideas .

I’ve been wanting to do this with my kids. I don’t have a candy thermometer though. Might be a worthwhile investment. 🙂

Hi Erin! My candy thermometer wasn’t reading properly so I used my digital meat thermometer, which reads up into the 400’s. It worked perfectly, and I thought it was a worthwhile investment for when I cook chicken/turkey too.

My first tip for having your children help you at the stove is to TURN THE HANDLE INTO THE MIDDLE OF THE STOVE! I don’t mind having kids help at the stove if everyone’s being careful but that handle sticking out looks like a disaster waiting to happen!

Thanks for the tip, Taryn. The handles usually do face in, and I must have left it out to snap a photo. Blogging can be dangerous business!!

Comments are closed.

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more in 10-12 years

Make your own rock candy, this experiment requires adult help it deals with very hot liquids be smart and be safe – only do this with adult help., you will need.

• A wooden skewer (you can also use a clean wooden chopstick)
• A clothespin
• 1 cup of water
• 2-3 cups of sugar
• A tall narrow glass or jar
• Clip the wooden skewer into the clothespin so that it hangs down inside the glass and is about 1 inch (2.5 cm) from the bottom of the glass. (as shown)
• Remove the skewer and clothespin and put them aside for now.
• Get a helpful adult!
• Pour the water into a pan and bring it to boil.
• Pour about 1/4 cup of sugar into the boiling water, stirring until it dissolves.

• Have your friendly ADULT carefully pour the sugar solution into the jar almost to the top. Then submerge the skewer back into the glass making sure that it is hanging straight down the middle without touching the sides.
• Allow the jar to fully cool and put it someplace where it will not be disturbed.
• Now just wait. The sugar crystals will grow over the next 3-7 days.

Want colored rock candy? Add food coloring to your sugar water and make sure sure that it is pretty dark in color for the best result.

How does it work?

When you mixed the water and sugar you made a SUPER SATURATED SOLUTION. This means that the water could only hold the sugar if both were very hot. As the water cools the sugar “comes out” of the solution back into sugar crystals on your skewer. The skewer (and sometimes the glass itself) act as a “seed” that the sugar crystals start to grow on. With some luck and patience you will have a tasty scientific treat! Enjoy!

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Rock Candy Recipe

December 12, 2011 By Emma Vanstone 26 Comments

The first thing I have to say about this activity is that it’s sticky, messy and doesn’t always work, but when it does, it’s pretty amazing. Our rock candy recipe has been perfected from many, many attempts to get it to work, so hopefully, we’ve done most of the hard work for you.

The first time we tried, nothing grew at all as the solution wasn’t concentrated enough, the second time, we made it too concentrated, and the whole solution crystallised. The third time it worked!!

3 cups of caster sugar

1 cup of water

A lolly stick, wooden stick or circle of wire/string

Some sparkles  and/or food colouring ( optional )

How to make your own rock candy

Heat the water in a pan and add the sugar slowly, stirring continuously.

Keep adding sugar until no more will dissolve, and then remove the heat and leave to cool for about 5 minutes. If you can get a bit more sugar to dissolve, then that’s a good thing. You want a saturated solution .

Pour the solution into a glass jar and suspend the lolly stick, we used some sellotape to hold it in place. Don’t let it touch the bottom or the sides of the jar.

Alternatively, you could tie some string to a pencil and rest the pencil on top of the jar with the string hanging in the jar.

You should see crystals start to form after a few days.

We made a lolly and a circle to hang on the Christmas tree. I was a bit disappointed with the circle, but we will be trying again with a star!

Why does sugar crystallise?

A crystal is a solid material with a naturally geometrically regular form. Some take millions of years to form, such as diamonds. The sugar crystals we made above take just a few days.

Most minerals dissolved in water will form crystals given enough time and space. The shape of the crystal formed depends on the mineral’s molecule shape.

In the case of our sugar crystals, there are two processes at work.

Evaporation – the water evaporates slowly, meaning the solution becomes more saturated, so the sugar molecules come out of the solution and collect on the string/wire or stick.

Precipitation – the solution we made was very concentrated, which means there was too much solute to remain dissolved in the water, therefore it starts to precipitate.

What is a saturated solution?

A saturated solution is a solution that won’t dissolve any more solute at that temperature. Our water and sugar solution was saturated when no more sugar would dissolve.

What is a solute?

A solute is a solid being dissolved. When making rock candy , sugar is the solute, and water is the solvent .

What is a solvent?

This is the liquid the solute is being dissolved into.

What is a solution?

This is what we call a solute and solvent .

If you enjoyed this activity, you’ll love my other candy science experiments !

Last Updated on February 20, 2023 by Emma Vanstone

Safety Notice

Science Sparks ( Wild Sparks Enterprises Ltd ) are not liable for the actions of activity of any person who uses the information in this resource or in any of the suggested further resources. Science Sparks assume no liability with regard to injuries or damage to property that may occur as a result of using the information and carrying out the practical activities contained in this resource or in any of the suggested further resources.

These activities are designed to be carried out by children working with a parent, guardian or other appropriate adult. The adult involved is fully responsible for ensuring that the activities are carried out safely.

Reader Interactions

December 12, 2011 at 1:23 pm

This is amazing! such a genius idea!!!! I might even try and convince husband to give it a go…baby still too little for this.

December 14, 2011 at 9:40 pm

Fun for adults too!

December 12, 2011 at 1:29 pm

ooh I love this. Definitely going to try it with my little ones. Thanks for sharing. x

Thank you, good luck with it x

December 12, 2011 at 4:33 pm

wow how beautiful and magical. i guess xmas at your house will be a ‘bomb’, lol

December 12, 2011 at 6:15 pm

How cool is that?? Your kids must love being your kids!

December 14, 2011 at 9:39 pm

Ahhh, thank you. I do try hard. xx

December 12, 2011 at 8:31 pm

Too cool! We just read a book about these being the entry for a Science Fair! It’s called My Blue Ribbon Day (or The Blue Ribbon Day). We’ll definitely have to try these sometime!

December 12, 2011 at 8:54 pm

These are amazing!!

Thank you. xx

December 13, 2011 at 5:00 am

Awesome idea and for an ornament too!

December 14, 2011 at 9:38 pm

awww, thanks. xx

December 13, 2011 at 3:39 pm

That is really cool!

Thank you. x

December 15, 2011 at 5:10 am

Love this idea! My boys will have tons of fun with this. So glad I found your blog (through ABC & 123) – I’m a new follower.

December 15, 2011 at 9:17 am

So glad you liked it. x

December 16, 2011 at 6:05 am

this is so cool! I’d love you to add this to my What We Wore and Made Party over at http://raegunwear.blogspot.com/search/label/WWWMW

December 16, 2011 at 9:19 am

Hi! I think that this is just great! I would LOVE for you to stop in and link this up in my Homeschooling on the Cheap! Link up. It is fairly new and I post it every Thursday. IT stays up all week. I’m looking for ideas on things homeschoolers can do. This looks like something for sure!

Thank you, Kelli http://3boysandadog.com/deals/2011/homeschooling-on-the-cheap-12152011/

December 16, 2011 at 9:35 am

They look great, especially with the pink. I’m a very impatient person but still I might try to make this 😉

December 18, 2011 at 9:32 pm

We’ve had the worst time trying to grow sugar crystals! I’m glad you finally managed it 🙂

December 18, 2011 at 9:47 pm

This is amazing!! What a cool, cool activity!!! We are definitely going to be trying this!!! I am your newest follower! I’d love for you to follow me back, if you want to =) I also wanted to invite you to link up to TGIF Linky Party – http://livinglifeintentionally.blogspot.com/search/label/Linkey%20Parties – I know my readers would love this!! Merry Christmas, Beth

January 07, 2012 at 3:49 pm

My daughter approves of the one that looks like a bracelet!

Thanks for linking up to Science Sunday (yes I am this late on commenting).

November 28, 2012 at 4:31 pm

My kids have brought these home with the yoghurt pot and lollipop stick before.I’ll have to get them to try making a bracelet.

November 28, 2012 at 5:19 pm

Fantastic! What a perfect Christmas Science Craft.

Thanks for sharing on Kids Get Crafty!

December 01, 2012 at 10:21 pm

My kids would be beyond excited to make their own candy. And this is such as simple recipe!

December 03, 2012 at 9:47 am

is it simple, although it did take us a few goes!

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Coffee Cups and Crayons

Simple play ideas, learning activities, kids crafts and party ideas, plus acts of kindness for kids!

August 14, 2014

Rock Candy Science Experiment

A science experiment that ends in candy is sure to motivate kids! You can show your kids how to make rock candy and learn about crystals at the same time.

Rock candy is simple to make at home, but it does take awhile for the crystals to form. This gives kids a chance to make observations over a period of days which is a great way to teach them to think like scientists !

How to Make Rock Candy:

• 2 cups sugar
• 1 cup water
• thin wooden skewer stick and clothespin
• pint size jar
• food coloring (optional)

We used the amounts above in each of our jars so you may need to double, triple, etc depending on how many you are doing.

Boil the water and slowly add the sugar until it all dissolves, this takes awhile. Add the color while it’s boiling if you want your candy to be colored. After the sugar has completely dissolved take it off the heat and let cool.  Pour the sugar water into the jar.

Wet your sticks with some of the sugar water and then roll them in more sugar.  This will help the crystals form on your stick. Be careful though, if your water hasn’t cooled yet the warmth will dissolve it.

Hang the stick in the sugar solution with the clothespin and set the jars somewhere they won’t be disturbed. Have the kids observe what is going on inside the jar and on the stick.

After a few days you can see crystals forming on the stick and on the sides of the jar.  If you are making rock candy to eat you will want to keep changing out the sugar water to dissuade crystals from growing on the side and to keep the bugs out!

We were just growing ours to observe and not to eat so crystals growing along the sides and top of the jar worked out perfectly.

After about 10 days the crystals are fully formed and you can pull the sticks out.

We actually ended up leaving ours for, ahem, 20 days because we forgot to take them out before we went on vacation!

We pulled out the sticks and used a magnifying glass to observe the sugar crystals that were formed on the sticks.

We also poured the water out of the jars and observed the crystals that grew inside the jars too!

Growing sugar crystals are such a pretty science experiment!

This is our last post in the summer science camp series, but that doesn’t mean the fun has to be over!

Simple science experiments are great to do any time of the year! Catch up on all of the science projects that were shared this summer.

On this blog:   Mentos geyser ,  Dancing raisins ,  Liquid layers ,  Homemade silly putty ,  Magic milk ,  Exploding baggie ,  Walking water

At What Do We Do All Day?:  Ice cube on a string ,   Solar oven ,  Homemade compass ,  Balloon rocket race , Leak proof bag ,  Simple science lab , Science YouTube channels for kids

Don’t let the fun and discovery stop there!

We have TONS of science experiments your kids will love on our  Super Cool Science Experiments for Kids  page! 

Take me to the experiments –>   Super Cool Science Experiments for Kids

About Megan Sheakoski

Megan is the creator of Coffee Cups and Crayons, a blog full of simple fun and learning. She believes that kids’ activities don’t have to be complicated to be fun and that learning is better with play.

August 15, 2014 at 7:17 am

Consequently mouth watering! That looks amazing.

February 1, 2024 at 8:43 am

i know right

February 26, 2015 at 1:42 pm

Thanks for sharing! Perfect for my 5 year old who loves crystals (and rock candy!!)

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Feast + West

Easy, elegant cocktail recipes

Homemade Rock Candy

4.98 from 49 votes

If you’ve ever wondered how to make rock candy, now is the time to learn! This nostalgic childhood treat is easy to make, fun to eat and doubles as a science project. Just a few simple ingredients and a little patience to wait and let the magic happen.

This post contains affiliate links. If you click on one and buy something, Feast + West receives a small commission at no additional cost to you. All opinions are our own. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

table of contents

Rock Candy recipe

Growing up, my siblings and I treasured the old-fashioned candy room at the Mast General Store in North Carolina.

Every time we visited, my parents would let us each grab a bag and fill it with our favorites: lemonheads, fireballs, candy dots, black licorice sticks, Mary Janes, candy necklaces, caramels and rock candy.

But rock candy sticks always fascinated me! What kid wouldn’t be obsessed with edible gems on a stick? One summer, I got my answer during a fun science experiment as a summer project! I finally knew the secret to those beautiful rock candy crystals.

Even now, rock candy is still something I think is so fun. If there’s a drink with a rock candy garnish at a fancy cocktail bar, I’ll still order it! It conjures up that nostalgic feeling, the same way these cake push pops or moon pie ice cream do for me.

If you love rock candy swizzle sticks as much as me, now you can make your own with this super fun recipe. It’s cool to be a kid again!

More cocktail garnish recipes: Berry Ice Cubes • Margarita Salt • Sugared Cranberries

Why you’ll love this recipe

You’ll love this recipe, for a few reasons:

• Need something to keep your kids entertained during the summer? Take a page from my dad’s book and make DIY rock candy! It’s candy and a science experiment in one — who would say no to that!
• Not only does rock candy taste great, but it looks beautiful. It a great easy recipe to themed for any holiday. Make different colors to match the holiday spirit!
• Make your own rock candy to give out as gifts! The kids would love to hand it out to school and it’d also be so much fun to hand out this sugar candy for Halloween or at the holidays.

What is rock candy?

Rock candy is essentially just sugar molecules grown on wooden sticks or cotton string to form a pretty piece of candy. This sweet treat can be made out of any type of sugar, as long as you use the proper methods to make it!

Swizzle sticks are made by letting a supersaturated sugar solution sit for a while and form large sugar crystals. This crystallization process makes the large shiny chunks of sugary goodness that are just irresistible!

Rock candy is often sold in various colors, but it can also be made to look natural. It will be transparent with granulated sugar, and with cane sugar or brown sugar, it have be a golden brown hue.

Materials & ingredients

You’ll need to gather a few simple ingredients and supplies to make rock candy:

The list is for reference only to help you with your shopping. For the complete list with amounts, scroll down to the printable recipe card at the end of this article.

• 8 oz. mason jars , or larger: Drinking glasses will work too, if you have a few spares on hand. But make sure you don’t use anything smaller than 8 oz.
• food-safe, wooden swizzle sticks OR string : It is very important to buy something that is food grade. After all, you want to be able to eat your tasty rock sugar. You can also look for lollipop sticks!
• clothespins : If you are using string, grab a pencil or a wooden spoon with a thin handle. You’ll need to use that to tie the string on something and hold it in place.
• sugar : I recommend using pure granulated sugar.
• water: For best results (and best flavor), use a purified or filtered water.
• liquid food coloring : Totally optional, but man does it make this homemade rock candy recipe extra exciting!

How to make rock candy

Rock candy is surprisingly simple to make in your own kitchen. It only takes 30 minutes to prepare, and then about a week or two for the crystal growth to complete.

SAFETY NOTE: If you’re making this recipe with kiddos, please make sure to supervise as it will require making a very hot liquid. No burned little fingers on your watch, okay?

First, cook the granulated sugar and water together to make a super thick simple syrup .

Make sure you follow the printable instructions below, because this is unlike any simple syrup you’ve ever made.

At this step, feel free to add a few drops of food coloring to the mixture if you’d like. You can use any color!

While the sugar-water mixture is cooking, prepare whatever materials you plan to use for the sugar crystals to attach to. Wooden swizzle sticks or a string works great.

The rock candy will need some sugar crystals to attach to, so run the sticks or string under some water to dampen it, then roll it in enough sugar to coat them heavily. Don’t be worried that you are using too much sugar, you likely aren’t!

Once coated, allow the stick or string to dry completely. When the sugar mixture is ready, decant it into glasses or jars. Then insert the sticks or string — attach sticks to clothespin and tie baker’s string to a pencil.

The crystallization process

Cover with saran wrap to keep out bugs and dust. Then, set it aside and let the wait begin!

Rock candy crystals take a couple of weeks to fully form, but it is more than worth the wait.

I hope you love making this tasty hard candy and that it brings you tons of childlike joy as you watch it form! Once your fun treat is ready, enjoy however you would like!

Tips & tricks

Here are some tips and tricks for making this recipe:

• For a light, pastel color, 3-4 drops will do! For a bright, saturated color, do 6-8 drops or more. Keep in mind that pastel will be easier to watch as the rock candy crystals grow.
• Keep your rock candy mixture in a cool and dry place (room temperature) as you wait during the crystallization process. Try not to move it around too much and don’t bump it or knock it over.
• For extra sciencey fun, document the growth day by day with pictures and charts. Maybe even do a social media update so that everyone can be a part of the excitement! You can use this recipe for science fair projects during the school year too. I bet it’d win!

How to use rock candy

These sugar-coated sticks are the most fun way to sweeten a warm cup of coffee or tea . Bring out your inner child while drinking your morning cup of jo!

You can also crush up this pretty little candy and use it on top of cupcakes or cookies . Who needs sprinkles when you can use straight rock candy?

Enjoy this fun treat in a pink champagne cocktail or even as a garnish in strawberry rosé sangria . There’s even a cocktail called rock and rye whose purpose is to give rock candy the spotlight!

Of course, no one says you have to enjoy it in a civilized manner. Go to munchin’ on that stick of sugar and get your face all sticky like a kid! Who cares, it’s worth it.

The main reason homemade rock candy doesn’t turn out is because there weren’t cups of sugar in the sugar mixture, or the sticks/string were not coated in enough sugar. Make sure you measure out everything exactly according to instructions. And don’t be afraid to coat those sticks and strings in tons of white sugar.

Never refrigerate rock candy! You may think that it would speed up the growth of those large sugar crystals, but it won’t. Keep the supersaturated solution at room temperature and just let science do its thing.

More candy recipes

• White Chocolate Bark : So much fun to make with colorful candies and sprinkles.
• Homemade Sprinkles : Skip the store-bought stuff and make your own sprinkles!
• Ginger Chews : These ginger candies are some of my favorites to snack on!
• Brown Sugar Caramels : Caramels are a delicious treat to add to candy gift boxes.

— Did you make this recipe? —

Please leave a ★★★★★ review or comment below.

ingredients

• 2 cups water
• 4 cups granulated sugar plus 2 tablespoons
• 4-6 drops food coloring optional

instructions

• Heat water in a saucepan over medium heat. Add sugar one cup at a time, stirring after each addition until the sugar dissolved. Mixture will become thick. Remove from heat.
• Stir in food coloring now, if desired. Let cool for 10 minutes.
• Meanwhile prepare wooden swizzle sticks or string. Run through water and then coat thickly in sugar. Let dry completely.
• Pour sugar mixture into 6 (8-oz.) jars. Using clothespins (or a pencil for string) to suspend swizzle sticks 1 inch from the bottom of the jar. Be careful for the sticks/string to avoid the edges of the jar. Cover with saran wrap and set in a cool, dry place.
• Allow rock candy to rest and form for 2 weeks. Once it has grown to around 1-inch diameter, remove from the sugar syrup and let dry on a plate. Discard remaining sugar syrup and crystals.

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nutrition information

Amount per serving:, the golden ratio guide:.

Mix the perfect cocktail, every time

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April 23, 2022 at 1:32 pm

Sabrina says

June 1, 2023 at 7:41 am

Hi Susannah.. I would love to try this recipe for an upcoming party. So I have a few questions.. 1. How many sticks can you put in one jar? I’m needing at least 50 rock candy sticks. 2. How long will they last after removing them from the jars? 3. How to store them until needed?

Thank you!!

Susannah says

June 1, 2023 at 4:08 pm

Hey Sabrina! That is awesome that you want to try making so many. To answer your questions:

• I would think you could do 2 or 3 sticks in a jar, but it depends on the size of your jar — you don’t want the sticks to touch so that there is room for the crystals to form. I’ve only ever tried it with one stick per jar though so I’m not certain on this one.
• They should last indefinitely if stored properly.
• Once you remove them from the liquid, let them dry out completely. You can dab them with a paper towel and then put them on a tray or plate to dry out for an hour or two. Then store them in a clean, dry airtight container.

Hope this helps!

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