Melting Sugar with Lemon Juice

Once sugar (sucrose) inverts, it doesn’t recrystallize. The combination of acid and heat will create an inversion. Invert sugar is achieved through acid by splitting sucrose into its components: monomers, glucose, and fructose. Creating an inversion will result in a very light-colored liquid caramel. One quick squeeze of lemon should be used for each 3½ oz/100 g of sugar, or the juice of one whole lemon for 35¼ oz/1000 g of sugar. When the lemon juice is added, the mixture will begin to thin out.