Images and smells come to my mind when I hear this sweet word: Eggs with sugar swirled in the bucket of the mixer, puffed and fluffy to become a delicious cake. Chocolate cookies that come out of the pan hot and are sprinkled with a thick dose of powdered sugar. In a pan, sugar grains melt slowly, until they become a magical caramel. Doesn't it an admirable material?
The history of sugar..
The sugarcane plant comes from the island of New Guinea in the Pacific Ocean and its inhabitants were the first to discover sugar. Many years later, around 500 BC, it was transported to India, which was the first country to produce raw sugar from cane spirit.
In Europe, sugar appeared in the 8th century AD. by the Moors but also by the Crusaders who, by looting Arab caravans, accidentally discovered what they called "sweet salt". During the Napoleonic Wars, when the supply of sugarcane stopped, the alternative was found in beets, which produced similar quality sugar.
Later, the American conquest offered the European colonialists vast areas suitable for sugarcane cultivation, while they took care of bringing in numerous legions of slaves from Africa as labor. The enormous wealth that the sugar trade brought until 1750 was the main reason for the mass settlement and establishment of colonies in the Caribbean by the British and the French and in Brazil by the Portuguese. Gradually, sugar consumption has been on the rise, literally soaring over the last few decades, with the average consumption in the 1980s reaching 20 kg per year and doubling around 2000. Today, the average European citizen consumes more than 40 kilos of sugar each year, of which about 15 are contained in ready meals, ice creams, chocolates and soft drinks.
But what is sugar?
Sugar is a carbohydrate and comes in many forms, but they all have the same sweet taste. The common table sugar added to beverages and sweets is sucrose, while fructose is found in fruits and honey and lactose in milk. The simplest form of sugar is glucose, which is part of the various types of sugar and is a key component of starch.
Glucose is the form of sugar that circulates in the blood and provides energy to the body.
The many types of sugar
White Sugar
It is refined sugar and comes from cane or sugar beet. There is a lot of controversy over whether cane or beet sugar is of better quality, although it is generally accepted that the processing of both species yields sugar of the same quality. The varieties of sugar have different characteristics and uses in cooking or confectionery:
* Crystalline: Common daily sugar consists of medium grains, is easy to use and can be used anywhere.
* Caster: Very popular in England and America. It is essentially the middle "size" between granulated sugar and icing, with very small crystals. Εάν δεν μπορείτε να βρείτε ζάχαρη άχνη, μπορείτε να φτιάξετε το δικό σας αλέθοντας κοκκοποιημένη ζάχαρη στο μπλέντερ για λίγα δευτερόλεπτα. Η ζάχαρη άχνη διαλύεται πιο εύκολα στα γλυκά.
* Powder: It is white granulated sugar with very fine grains like powder. Its crystals incorporate more air than other types of sugar and give more volume to products we want to bake, so a much better texture. It also dissolves very easily and helps to bind the meringue and tighten the whipped cream.
Brown sugar
The most obvious difference between white and brown sugar is found in the content of molasses, ie the dark, sticky liquid produced by the processing of cane juice. For the production of some types of brown sugar molasses is partially removed from raw or partially processed sugar, while for the production of other types molasses is added to processed white sugar. The light brown sugar is ideal for baking, sauces and cookies.
The darker sugar that has a more intense aroma can be used in various chutneys, barbeque sauces and marinades.
Demerada sugar
This variety got its name from the Demerara region of Guyana in South America where it was created, while today the main producer country is Mauritius. Demerara sugar is raw and comes from cane juice, which is steamed to concentrate into a thick syrup. It is then dehydrated giving large golden crystals with a light brown color and slightly sticky texture. It is widely used in England, Australia and Canada.
Muscovado sugar
Also known as Barbados sugar, this variety of raw sugar has a dark color, sticky texture and a strong caramel aroma, due to the cane juice it contains. In fact, it is one of the main ingredients in whiskey production.
Phoenix sugar
Also known as "jaggery" or "panela", this raw sugar is made from concentrated molasses juices from the palm trees of the Palmyra region. It is sold in hard bars that crumble, it has a brown color and is considered very nutritious, since - unlike processed sugar - it retains more minerals and no chemicals are used in its production. The aroma of this sugar is reminiscent of a faint aroma of sweet wine and makes it suitable for both sweet and savory dishes. It is widely used in Indian and Thai cuisine.
Cons
Sugar, especially white sugar, undergoes a lot of industrial processing, as a result of which it loses all the nutrients that can benefit our body. As a result, sugar not only consists of empty calories but also extracts vitamins, enzymes and minerals that are necessary for digestion, assimilation and use of the body's reserves.
Consumption of sugar does not in itself cause diabetes, as diabetes is due to both genetic and environmental factors. But surely weight gain beyond normal and concomitant sugar consumption increases the risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
The main problem directly related to sugar is caries. Bacteria in the oral cavity feed on sugar and produce acids that cause weakening and rupture of the enamel that covers the teeth.
Artificial sweeteners
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the European Food Safety Commission (EFSA) have to date approved the following artificial sweeteners:
* Potassium acesulfame: has about 200 times sweeter taste than sugar. Studies have shown that 95% is excreted unchanged in the urine, which means that it is not absorbed by the body and therefore does not provide calories. Potassium acesulfame is resistant to high temperatures and can not be used in cooking and confectionery. It was approved as a substance in 1988 and is considered a general purpose sweetener. It is used as a sweetener, in frozen desserts, candies and soft drinks.
* Aspartame: is a low-calorie sweetener, used in food and non-alcoholic beverages and is 160-220 times sweeter than sugar. Approved in 1981 by the US Food and Drug Administration and today it is an ingredient in more than 6,000 products. It has been linked to health problems, has been repeatedly reported in the press and its safety has been extensively studied - as it has been suspected of being carcinogenic - but there is no clear correlation. In May 2006, the European Food Safety Commission issued a statement stating that aspartame was not associated with carcinogenesis or other health problems.
* Saccharin: used as a sweetener since the beginning of the last century and was originally approved in more than 100 countries around the world. This form of sweetener has been accused of causing bladder cancer, which led to its ban in 1977.
It was intensively studied for 20 years and finally re-released, since no relationship was found between saccharin consumption and bladder cancer.
* Sucralose: discovered in 1976 and made from sugar through a process that changes the structure of its molecule. Its sweetness exceeds that of sugar by 600 times. It has been considered a general purpose sweetener since 1999 and more than 80 countries have approved its use in various products, although in Europe the Food Safety Authority has not yet approved it.
Natural substitutes
* Fructose: is an organic compound that belongs to carbohydrates and specifically to monosaccharides. It is a natural sugar found in fruits and some vegetables and is considered the sweetest monosaccharide found free in nature. It can contain the same calories as sugar, yet it is much sweeter and therefore, if we use less fructose (and therefore fewer calories), we will have the same result that we would have with more sugar. Also, fructose is indicated for health problems in the digestive system.
* Xylitol: is a sweetener that is abundant in birch wood and berries. It is the ideal natural sweetener substitute for sugar and can be used everywhere. It does not belong to the carbohydrate family but to sugar alcohols. Also, unlike other types of sugar, it is the best friend of the teeth, since the bacteria in the mouth can not use its molecules. Its disadvantage is that it loses a small part of its sweetening power in hot drinks.
Tips
* When opening the package, the sugar should be stored in an airtight container in a dry and cool place, where it can be stored for up to 1 year.
* If the brown sugar hardens, you can soften it by placing it for a few days in a plastic bag together with a slice of apple.
* By pouring a teaspoon of sugar in a jar with freshly cut flowers, you will extend their shelf life.
Note: it is worth making a distinction between molasses and cane juice. Juice is the natural product resulting from the crushing of cane, is light in color and is an alternative, organic but rare sweetener. Molasses, on the other hand, is the by-product produced by the processing of cane juice to create sugar.
See also:
6 things you need to know about stevia
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