Brown sugar is a sucrose type of sugar product characterizedby a brown color which is present because of the molasses contained in it.Light brown sugar is known for containing up to 3.5 percent of molasses whileits dark counterpart contains no more than 6.5 percent of molasses. Thesemolasses are characterized by a rather hygroscopic nature so that is why brownsugar is commonly moist and sometimes referred to as soft. In some industrialproducts, brown sugar can be mixed in with dyes or other sorts of chemicals.The size of the particles is usually smaller than the size of particles of thegranulated white sugar. It is very easy to create an equivalent of brown sugarsimply by adding molasses to the ordinary table sugar. A tablespoon of molassesshould be sufficient for each cup of sugar. During the nineteenth century therefined white sugar industry was newly consolidated and it did not have anycontrol over the production of brown sugar. This is why they had an opencampaign against the use of brown sugar which included the showing of harmlessmicrobes from it which looked repulsive. The campaign was very effective sopeople usually stayed away from it. During the process of production of brownsugar the molasses are added to the crystals of the refined white sugar. Thisprocess is mainly based on beet sugar and it involves brown sugar which is muchcoarser. Molasses used for this process of production are commonly obtainedfrom sugar cane because they have a much better flavor than the ones obtainedfrom beet sugar. Molasses are highly efficient in masking the taste, odor andcolor differences which are characteristic for some types of refined whitesugar.
Natural Brown Sugar
Natural brown sugar is derived from the very first processof crystallization used on the sugar cane. It is also sometimes referred to asraw sugar as it contains much more molasses and minerals than other types ofsugar. There are certain types of natural brown sugar which are sold underdifferent brand names such as Demerara, Muscovado or Turbinado. Quite often,these sugars get spun in a centrifuge so that all impurities and water getremoved from them. Muscovado is the most famous type of dark brown sugar andits production does not involve putting it into a centrifuge. It ischaracterized by rather small crystals and it is often considered as ratherdamp sugar. It is highly beneficial because it retains all of the sugar’snatural minerals.
Nutritional Value
Brown sugar is often preferred over its white counterpartbecause it contains significantly less calories. This is mainly due to the factthat it contains much more water than white sugar. A 100 grams of brown sugarcontains approximately 373 calories, while the same amount of white sugar containssomewhere around 396 calories. There is a slight misconception about the wholething with calories because brown sugar may sometimes have even more caloriesthan white sugar when measured by volume, due to the fact that its crystals aremuch smaller. Brown sugar is considered by many as a much healthier optionbecause it contains much more sodium, potassium, iron, phosphorus and calciumthan its white counterpart.
White Sugar vs. Brown Sugar
Both brown and white sugar are used quite a lot in numeroushouseholds everywhere around the world for different culinary and otherpurposes. White sugar is commonly made from sugar cane or sugar beets and it isactually pure sucrose when it is in its granulated form. Different processinglevels greatly affect the size of the crystals and the whiteness and the colorof the sugar. Brown sugar is usually divided into two main categories whichinclude the sticky brown sugar and the free flowing one. The amount of molassesor the syrup determines the color and the stickiness of the brown sugar. Whitesugar is usually used much more than brown sugar and it can be purchased invarious different forms such as cubes, granules, free flowing form and tablets.There is also the Castor sugar which is characterized by a very fine textureand it dissolves instantly. It is commonly used in the preparation of variousdifferent types of drinks. Unlike white sugar, brown sugar is characterized bya very tender texture which is derived from the molasses. The darker the colorof the sugar, the more molasses it contains. The darkness of the color alsodetermines the intensity of the flavor. Brown sugar always needs to be packed in plastic bags because they arevery efficient at keeping it soft and retaining its proper moisture. Brownsugar and white sugar also give different varieties of taste to various typesof baked foods as well. Brown sugar is known for adding a richer flavor and amuch more moist texture.
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