Place the skewers in water, and then coat them in sugar. Set them aside to dry for at least an hour or overnight.

Wash and dry the mason jars.

Attach a clip to each skewer and then place it into the jars. The skewer should be suspended in the jar, about an inch from the bottom.

Remove the skewer for now. You’ll place it back into the jar when you add the sugar solution.

To make the sugar solution, place 4 cups of water into a large saucepan. Bring the water to a boil and add the sugar one cup at a time. Stir well with a wooden spoon after adding each cup until the sugar is completely dissolved, and then add the next cup of sugar. The sugar will become saturated with water and will begin to clump before dissolving. This is expected.

When the last cup of sugar is dissolved, let the mixture simmer for about 5 minutes and then remove the pot from the heat.

Let the mixture cool for about 15 minutes.

Divide the mixture between the 5 prepared mason jars. Stir in the food coloring.

Place the prepared skewers into the sugar solution. Try not to move the jars much after adding the skewers.

The rock candy will now begin to grow. The skewers can be removed at any time but for best results, allow the candy to form for about 6 days.

When you’re ready to remove the rock candy sticks from the jars, use your fingers to gently crack the hardened layer of sugar that has formed on top of the jar and gently wiggle the stick until it is released. Allow any syrup to drip from the stick. Do this over a bowl or some paper towels to catch the drops.