The honey that never expires

Archaeologists excavating Ancient Egyptian tombs found jars of honey more than three thousand years old. It was still edible.

Honey is, in practice, the only food that doesn't spoil on its own. The reason is a small chemical miracle: it contains almost no water, it's highly acidic, and bees add an enzyme that produces hydrogen peroxide — the same compound as household disinfectant. Any bacterium that lands there dies dehydrated and disinfected at once.

That's why honey was used for centuries to treat wounds: ancient armies carried it as a first-aid kit, and sterilized-honey dressings still exist in hospitals today.

The only catch: keep it sealed. If it absorbs moisture from the air, it loses its shield. That crystallized honey at the back of your pantry isn't bad — warm it gently in a water bath and it will turn liquid again, as edible as the pharaohs'.