Brown sugar typical of that bought in Western supermarkets

Brown sugar is an unrefined or partially refined soft sugar consisting of sugar crystals combined with molasses. Brown sugar is produced similarly to white sugar, with two exceptions. Its crystals are left much smaller than for white sugar, and the syrup or molasses is not washed off completely. Brown sugar contains from 3.5% molasses (light brown sugar) to 6.5% molasses (dark brown sugar). In general use, sugar is taken to mean sucrose, also called table sugar or saccharose, a disaccharide which is a white crystalline solid. ... Quartz crystal A crystal is a solid in which the constituent atoms, molecules, or ions are packed in a regularly ordered, repeating pattern extending in all three spatial dimensions. ... Molasses or treacle is a thick, syrupy derivative of the juice of the sugarcane plant or the processing of sugar beet. ... This article deals with sugar as food and as an important, widely traded commodity; the word also has other uses; see Sugar (disambiguation) A sugar is a form of carbohydrate; the most commonly used sugar is a white crystalline solid, sucrose; used to alter the flavor and properties (mouthfeel, perservation...

Many brown sugar producers produce brown sugar by adding molasses to completely refined white sugar crystals in order to more carefully control the ratio of molasses to sugar crystals, and to reduce manufacturing costs. Brown sugar prepared in this manner is often much coarser than its unrefined equivalent, and its molasses may be easily separated from the crystals to yield white sugar (which is not possible with unrefined sugar). This is mainly done for inventory control and convenience, and technically the sugar is not any different, whichever way it is prepared.

All brown sugar produced for retail sale is made with molasses from sugar cane, because the flavor of cane molasses is palatable to humans. No retail brown sugar is produced from sugar beet molasses, because the flavor of beet molasses is not palatable to humans, although cattle like it. The white sugar to which the molasses is added can be from either origin as both are practically 100% pure and have no flavour other than sweetness. Species Ref: ITIS 42058 as of 2004-05-05 Sugarcane is one of six species of a tall tropical southeast Asian grass (Family Poaceae) having stout fibrous jointed stalks whose sap at one time was the primary source of sugar. ... Binomial name Homo sapiens Linnaeus, 1758 Subspecies Homo sapiens idaltu (extinct) Homo sapiens sapiens For other uses, see Human (disambiguation). ... Two sugar beets - the one on the left has been cultivated to be smoother than the traditional beet, so that it traps less soil. ... Binomial name Bos taurus Linnaeus, 1758 Cattle (called cows in vernacular usage) are domesticated ungulates, a member of the subfamily Bovinae of the family Bovidae. ...

Brown sugar can be made at home by mixing white granulated sugar with molasses, using one tablespoon of molasses for every cup of white sugar (one-sixteenth or 6.25% of the total volume). Thorough blending will yield dark brown sugar; for light brown sugar, between one and two teaspoons of molasses per cup should be used instead. It is, however, simpler to substitute molasses for an equal portion of white sugar while cooking, without mixing them separately. This tablespoon has a capacity of about 1 tbsp. ... Cup can refer to: A drinking vessel such as a teacup or similar drinkware. ... Volume, also called capacity, is a quantification of how much space an object occupies. ...

Brown sugar has a lower caloric value than white sugar.

External links

• Usenet posting about sugar refining techniques