How is licorice made? From licorice root to the tin
How is licorice made? From licorice root to the tin
A product guide: what licorice consists of, how the root becomes a mass, what salmiak has to do with it — and what mandatory information must be on the package. No best list, no health advice.
Licorice is not an aroma, but an extract from a root. This is the point where everything else is decided — the color, the sweetness, the price and the question of why some packages carry a warning and others do not.
This article explains the journey from licorice to finished licorice, the difference between sweet and salty licorice, and the three labeling levels that apply in Germany.
What is licorice made of?
The basic ingredient is the root of true licorice (Glycyrrhiza glabra), a legume plant from the Mediterranean region and West Asia. Only the root is used for licorice, not the herb.
It becomes sweet due to glycyrrhizin — the main active ingredient of the root, which achieves many times the sweetness of sugar and brings with it the typical, slightly earthy-aniseed tone. This substance is also the reason for the labeling regulations below: it not only sweetens, it is also physiologically effective.
In addition to licorice extract, finished licorice usually consists of:
- Sugar or sugar syrup — carries the mass and mutes the bitterness of the root extract.
- Starch, flour or gelatin — determine whether the result will be soft, chewy or hard.
- Salmiak — only for salty licorice, more on that in a moment.
The proportion of the actual licorice extract is usually smaller than many assume. It is the most expensive component and at the same time the one that carries everything in terms of taste.
How is licorice made? The five steps
Licorice production takes place in five steps — from the root material to the finished ball:
- Harvesting and crushing. The roots are harvested after several years of growth, washed and crushed.
- Boiling. The crushed root material is extracted with hot water. A thin, dark raw juice is produced.
- Thickening. The juice is evaporated until a viscous, almost black mass remains — the raw licorice, traditionally traded in blocks. This is the semi-finished product that licorice manufacturers work with; it is not yet ready for consumption.
- Preparing the mass. The raw licorice is heated and cooked with sugar, syrup and the desired binding agent. This is where the decision about the texture is made — and this is where salmiak is added for salty licorice.
- Shaping and drying. The mass is shaped: extruded into cords, poured into starch molds or rolled into balls. It is then dried until the residual water content is correct. Only then is a coating, if any, added.
The last point is where the manufacturers differ. A coating of chocolate, a salmiak shell or a layer of powder are separate steps after drying — not part of the licorice mass itself.
Sweet or salty? The difference is salmiak
The most common confusion: salty licorice is not licorice with table salt. The salty, sharp-metallic tone comes from salmiak, i.e. ammonium chloride.
The rule of thumb: Sweet licorice contains no salmiak. Salty licorice additionally contains salmiak. Lakritsfabriken describes it exactly like this for its own sweet and salty line.
Anyone who tries salty licorice for the first time and finds it "too sharp" is not tasting salt, but ammonium chloride. This also explains why the impression cannot be rinsed away with water like a salty note, but lingers.
What must be on the label
Above certain salmiak contents, the legislator in Germany prescribes warnings. The scale is three-tiered and refers to grams of ammonium chloride per kilogram of the ready-to-eat product:
- over 20 g/kg (2%): "Adult licorice – not for children"
- from 45 g/kg (4.5%): "Extra strong, adult licorice – not for children"
- from 80 g/kg (8%): additionally the warning that excessive consumption can impair health, especially in people with kidney disease
For glycyrrhizin, there is a separate threshold: products with more than 200 mg per 100 g are considered strong licorice and must be labeled accordingly. The German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment recommends a maximum intake of 100 mg glycyrrhizin per day as a guideline.
In practice, this means: the warning on a package is not a judgment of quality, but a quantity statement. It tells you that you have a strong product in front of you — for many connoisseurs it is even the selling point.
Denmark, Netherlands, Sweden — three schools
Licorice is regionally characterized. Three styles can be clearly distinguished:
Denmark: Licorice as confectionery
Danish licorice is the youngest of these schools — and the one that has changed the reputation of the category in Germany. Lakrids by Bülow stands for this. Johan Bülow started on the island of Bornholm and coated the licorice core with chocolate — at that time a break with tradition. The assortment still follows a simple system today: letters A to F for the varieties with chocolate coating, numbers 1 to 4 for those without.
If you want to try the original, go for A – The Original: sweet licorice core, milk chocolate, dusted with licorice powder on the outside. The dark variant is F – Dark & Sea Salt with dark chocolate and sea salt.
Netherlands: salty, chewy, in animal shape
Dutch licorice — originally drop — comes from the country with the highest per capita consumption, and the taste there is distinctly salty. Characteristic are the traditional shapes — at Remmelt S. Smid from Groningen, for example, the salty licorice in herring shape, cooked according to an old recipe.
Sweden: soft and aromatic
Lakritsfabriken from Helsingborg stands for the soft, easily chewable type with a clearly defined aroma — handcrafted since 2011, in a sweet and a salty line.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is licorice made of?
From the thickened extract of licorice root, plus sugar or syrup and a binder such as starch, flour or gelatin. Salty licorice additionally contains salmiak. Coatings of chocolate or powder are added only after drying.
What is licorice — and what is licorice made of?
"Lakritz" and "Lakritze" refer to the same thing; the form with -e is older and more regionally widespread. Licorice is the product made from thickened licorice extract, sugar and binder — not an artificial aroma, but a root extract.
Is licorice and licorice root the same?
No. Licorice root is the plant or its root — the raw material. Licorice is the product made from it. You can also chew licorice root purely or brew it as a tea; it tastes significantly different from finished licorice.
Why is some licorice black and some brown?
The color comes from the thickened root extract and the degree of caramelization during cooking. Very light or colored products usually contain little licorice extract and derive their color from other ingredients.
What does "Adult licorice – not for children" mean?
That the product contains more than 20 grams of salmiak per kilogram. The warning is legally required and describes the quantity, not the quality. From 45 g/kg, "Extra strong" is added, and from 80 g/kg, a warning about kidney diseases is also included.
What exactly is salmiak?
Ammonium chloride. It provides the salty-sharp, slightly metallic tone that distinguishes salty licorice from sweet licorice. It has little in common with table salt in terms of taste.
How is licorice with chocolate made?
The finished, dried licorice core is coated with tempered chocolate in a dragee drum and then powdered depending on the variety — for A – The Original, for example, with licorice powder, for E – Salmiak with a salmiak coating over white chocolate.
How long does licorice last?
Unopened and stored in a cool place, several months to over a year — the best-before date is on the package. Once opened, licorice dries out and becomes hard. Tins with tight lids are therefore not a design quirk, but functional.
What you can try from the assortment
- Sweet start: A – The Original — the classic with milk chocolate.
- Salty start: Remmelt S. Smid Salty Licorice 300 g — the Dutch classic in herring shape.
- For experienced salmiak lovers: E – Salmiak — salty core, white chocolate, salmiak coating.
- Dark instead of milk: F – Dark & Sea Salt.
- Fruity as a contrast: B – Passion Fruit.
- Complete selection: Lakrids & Licorice.
If you would like to give licorice as a gift: The Licorice Advent Calendar explains what is behind the doors and how the sizes differ.
