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There are many types of sugar on the market today, but brown sugar and white sugar are still the two most popular and often used in cooking and preparation. So what is the difference between these two sugars?
1. Origin of brown sugar and white sugar
Sugar is a familiar ingredient in the human diet thousands of years ago. In today's life, people often use sugar in many forms such as: white sugar, granulated sugar, powdered sugar, light brown sugar, dark brown sugar, raw sugar, molasses, honey,... Regardless of the type. which sugars, the main component of simple sugars is crystalline sucrose. These two sugars are produced in countries with tropical climates, where sugar cane or sugar beets grow are used as the main ingredients to make these two sugars.
In cane and sugar beet there are tons of sucrose that help us easily make sugar. People use sugar cane or sugar beets, then grind to get all the juice and juice. Carrying out the process of boiling into a syrup (which is sucrose and molasses), the molasses is removed and the remaining sucrose is dried until it crystallizes into the sugar we use every day. Thanks to the above method, we can get white sugar and natural brown sugar.
However, the methods used to turn brown sugar and white sugar are different. First, the sugary juices from both of these plants are extracted, refined, and heated to form a concentrated, brown syrup known as molasses. Next, the crystallization sugar is centrifuged to produce the crystalline sugar. A centrifuge is an extremely fast rotating machine that separates the sugar crystals from the molasses. The white sugar is then further processed to remove excess molasses and produce smaller crystals. It is then run through a filtration system usually made of bone coal or crushed animal bones to produce white sugar. Refined brown sugar is simply white sugar with molasses added to it. This means that brown sugar is pure, unrefined sugar and undergoes less processing than white sugar, allowing it to retain some of its molasses content and natural brown color. Although both are a form of sugar, they have different properties that will affect the final texture.
Sugar plays an important role in our daily lives. Most people use sugar in the cooking process as a seasoning in dishes and in the production of confectionery as well... Sugar has become familiar to human life, however, many people abuse it. Using too much sugar leads to many diseases such as diabetes, obesity, cardiovascular diseases, cancer because when the amount of sugar in the body increases, insulin is secreted more and converted into fuel to burn. , produces fructose and is harmful to health.
In addition to the above diseases, sugar can also cause acne, bad skin, tooth decay, ... if used too much. Therefore, we need to consider and control the amount of sugar used every day to ensure the best health.
2. The difference between brown sugar and white sugar
In addition to the most obvious difference in color, these two types of brown sugar and white sugar also have many different uses and effects in life. Although they can sometimes be used interchangeably, doing so can affect the color, flavor or texture of the final product with the dish. The molasses contained in brown sugar retains moisture, so when used it results in softer but denser baked goods. For example, cookies made with brown sugar will be more moist and dense, while cookies made with white sugar will expand more, allowing more air into the dough and resulting in a more spongy texture.
For this reason, white sugar is used in some baked goods that require just enough fat gain, such as meringues, mousses, souffles and muffins. In contrast, brown sugar is used for dense baked goods such as zucchini sandwiches and rich cookies. In addition, brown sugar is used to make glazes and rich sauces, such as barbecue sauce. They come in very different flavor and color profiles. The main difference between white and brown sugar is their flavor and color so swapping white sugar for brown sugar in recipes will affect the color of the food and give it a caramel or light brown color.
The most notable nutritional difference between white and brown sugar is that brown sugar is slightly higher in calcium, iron, and potassium. However, the amount of this mineral in brown sugar is negligible, so it is not a good source of vitamins or minerals for our body. Besides, brown sugar also contains slightly fewer calories than white sugar, but the difference is very small. One teaspoon (4 grams) of brown sugar provides about 15 calories, while the same amount of white sugar has 16.3 calories. Apart from these small differences, they are nutritionally similar.
Although brown sugar contains more minerals than white sugar, the amount of these minerals is so small that they will not provide any health benefits. Sugar is thought to be a contributing factor to the obesity epidemic and a major contributor to diseases, including type 2 diabetes and heart disease. For this reason, each of us should consume no more than 5-10% of our daily calories from added sugars for a healthy meal. However, this should be further limited for best, healthiest health.
Thus, the production process of brown sugar and white sugar is almost the same. Brown sugar is processed with molasses to make the color and nutrients in natural brown sugar better than white sugar. However, that amount of nutrients is not too much. The most obvious difference is shown in the taste, moisture, density, ... of the two types of sugar will help our finished products bring different flavors. Therefore, we need to know which type of sugar to choose during use will help bring the desired results.
Once you have a clear understanding of the texture and nutritional value of each type of sugar, you can consider and use it to suit your current needs.
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