Every time I discover a way to make a popular commercial product at home, my mind is blown. Homemade corn syrup is not something I had ever considered making, but much like homemade grenadine, homemade Baileys, homemade goldfish crackers, and homemade Oreo cookies, I am so glad that I did. While I wouldn’t make any of these products from scratch every single time (I’m human and laziness often wins), every item on the list is better that its store-bought counterpart.

When I posted on the Cupcake Project Facebook page that I was making something with two pounds of sugar and corn, the guesses started rolling in. Several of you (the first being Amanda Johnson) correctly surmised that I was making homemade corn syrup (have a look at the post to see the other guesses). Susan Milner wasn’t so sure: “I thought corn syrup at first, too, but corn syrup doesn’t taste like corn. It’s just sugar from corn, so I say it’s a corn whiskey moonshine for sure!” I didn’t make moonshine, but Susan is correct. Store-bought corn syrup doesn’t taste like corn. In fact, this corn syrup is quite a different product from what you are used to (see the corn syrup Wikipedia page for details on how commercial corn syrup is made). This corn syrup is a thick sugar syrup that has a mild, pleasing taste of sweet corn.

Questions and Answers About Homemade Corn Syrup

Q. Is homemade corn syrup the same as store-bought corn syrup?
A. As I said above, it is not. However, it can be used as a substitute for commercial corn syrup in most recipes. Unlike commercial corn syrup, homemade corn syrup will develop some sugar crystals after it sits around for a while. So, it might not be the best choice for use in candy making.