How is corn syrup made from corn?

Question

The thick white syrup called corn syrup is often used in cooking, because it reacts differently than sugar, or sugar syrup.

Answer 1

A kernel of corn has an outer husk surrounding a white or yellow starchy substance. At the core of the starchy substance and toward the pointy end of the kernel is the germ. The germ contains a small amount of oil. If you cut a popcorn kernel in half, you can see the husk, starch and germ. If you cut out the tiny piece of germ and squeeze the germ on a piece of paper, you will see the oil!

Corn starch comes from the starchy part of the corn. You are right that corn contains no syrup directly -- the syrup is made from the starch. IStarch is a long-chain carbohydrate -- a polysaccharide. A polysaccharide is simply a collection of glucose molecules chained together. Inside the stomach, a polysaccharide is cleaved into its individual glucose molecules by enzymes so the glucose can enter the bloodstream.

To make corn syrup, enzymes are added to corn starch, and it is turned into a syrupy mixture of glucose, dextrose and maltose.

Answer 2

Corn syrup, known as glucose syrup outside Canada and the United States, is a syrup made from corn starch and composed mainly of glucose. A series of three enzymatic reactions is used to convert the corn starch to corn syrup. It is used to sweeten commercially prepared foods. Its moisture-retaining (humectant) properties keep foods moist and maintain freshness.