Licorice starts as the root of the Glycyrrhiza glabra plant, a legume native to southern Europe and parts of Asia. The root contains a compound called glycyrrhizin that tastes roughly 50 to 100 times sweeter than table sugar, which is why people have been chewing on it for thousands of years. But the licorice candy you find on store shelves is a different thing entirely from the raw root, built from a short list of ingredients that blend extract, sugar, and starch into something chewy.
What’s Inside the Root
The raw licorice root is surprisingly complex. A water-soluble active complex makes up 40 to 50 percent of the root’s dry weight, and it contains triterpenes, flavonoids, polysaccharides, simple sugars, amino acids, essential oils, and dozens of other compounds. Glycyrrhizin, the compound responsible for the signature sweetness, makes up anywhere from 2 to 25 percent of the root depending on growing conditions and the specific plant variety. It’s technically a mixture of potassium, calcium, and magnesium salts of glycyrrhizic acid.
The root’s yellow color comes from its flavonoid content, particularly compounds called liquiritin and isoliquiritin. Other active compounds in the root, including one called glabridin, function as antioxidants and have weak estrogen-like activity. This chemical richness is why licorice root has been used in traditional medicine for centuries, but it’s also why the root can cause real health problems in large amounts.
How Root Becomes Extract
To turn a woody root into something candy makers can work with, producers dry and crush the roots into a powder, then soak that powder in a mixture of water and a small amount of ethanol. The extraction works best at around 50°C (about 120°F) with roughly 60 minutes of soaking time. This pulls out the glycyrrhizin, flavonoids, and other soluble compounds while leaving behind the fibrous plant material.
The resulting liquid is then concentrated down by boiling off the water, producing dense blocks sometimes called “licorice loaves.” These concentrated blocks of extract are what candy manufacturers buy and use as their starting ingredient.
Black Licorice Candy Ingredients
Traditional black licorice candy has three essential components: licorice root extract, sugar, and a binding agent. The binder is where it gets interesting. Wheat flour makes up 25 to 40 percent of a typical licorice candy, a far higher proportion than most people would guess. The flour’s starch, a mix of roughly 25 percent amylose and 75 percent amylopectin, is what creates licorice’s distinctively dense, chewy texture through a process called gelation. While gluten contributes to the feel, starch gelation does most of the structural work.
Beyond those three core ingredients, manufacturers often add molasses for deeper color and flavor, beeswax for a glossy surface, and gum arabic or gelatin as additional binding agents. In some Nordic and Dutch varieties, ammonium chloride gives the candy a salty, almost astringent bite, producing what’s known as salty licorice or “salmiak.”
Here’s a detail that surprises many people: a lot of “licorice-flavored” products in the United States don’t use licorice root extract at all. They use anise oil or star anise extract instead. Anise is a completely different plant, but it shares a very similar flavor profile with licorice root, and it’s cheaper to source. Some manufacturers use a blend of both.
Red Licorice Isn’t Licorice
Red licorice contains zero licorice root extract. Brands like Twizzlers and Red Vines are fruit-flavored candies made with sugar, corn syrup, wheat flour, and artificial or natural fruit flavorings. They’re shaped the same way and made by a similar extrusion process, but the resemblance ends there. In fact, major brands don’t even use the word “licorice” on their packaging, labeling the product as “twists” instead.
So if you’re eating red licorice for the flavor of actual licorice, you’re not getting it. The only thing red and black varieties share is the rope-like shape and the wheat flour base that gives them both a chewy texture.
How Licorice Candy Is Shaped
The manufacturing process starts by combining licorice extract (or anise flavoring), sugar, wheat flour, and other ingredients into a dough. This dough is fed into an extruder, a machine with one or more screws inside a heated jacket that pushes the mixture through shaped dies, similar to how pasta is made. The extruded ropes or shapes pass through a cooling tunnel, then a cutting system trims them to the desired length. The finished candies are dried until their water content drops to just 4 to 5 percent, which gives them shelf stability and that firm chew.
Why Large Amounts Cause Problems
The same glycyrrhizin that makes licorice sweet also interferes with how your body handles cortisol, a hormone involved in regulating blood pressure and fluid balance. Normally, an enzyme in your kidneys converts active cortisol into an inactive form. Glycyrrhizin blocks that enzyme, allowing cortisol to build up and stimulate receptors that tell your kidneys to retain sodium and water while flushing out potassium. The result can be high blood pressure, low potassium levels, and in serious cases, irregular heart rhythms.
The FDA warns that for people over 40, eating more than two ounces of black licorice daily for two weeks can trigger heart rhythm problems. There’s no established “safe” threshold, and people with high blood pressure or heart or kidney conditions are at higher risk. This only applies to products containing real licorice root extract, not anise-flavored or fruit-flavored versions. A few pieces here and there won’t cause trouble for most people, but daily heavy consumption is a genuine cardiovascular risk.
Wheat Flour and Gluten Concerns
Because wheat flour makes up such a large portion of licorice candy, traditional licorice is not safe for people with celiac disease or gluten sensitivity. Recent research has explored using resistant dextrin, a low-calorie starch derivative from corn or wheat, as a replacement for wheat flour. Early results show it can mimic the texture and chewiness of traditional licorice while also reducing calorie content. Some specialty brands already offer gluten-free versions using alternative starches, but they’re not yet widespread.