CALORIC SWEETENER
Sugar, by Any Other Name
In my quest to help home cooks navigate the complex world of caloric sweeteners sold on store shelves, I found over 80 different types and listed them here. "Sugar, by Any Other Name," inspired by Shakespeare, reflects this variety — whether it's honey, agave, maple syrup, or cane sugar — at their core, they're still essentially sugar.
BREAKING DOWN CALORIC SWEETENERS
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Caloric sweeteners are produced from plant saps — including flower nectar extracted by bees—fruits, starches, and milk. Their sources are sugar cane, sugar beet, flower nectar, agave, coconut and maple trees, sorghum, corn, barley, brown rice, dates, pears, and apples. Keep scrolling to see them all.
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A caloric sweetener contains two major portions — sugar and water. It's a solution of one or more sugars in concentrated form. Honey is about 80% sugar, maple syrup around 66% sugar, and table sugar 99.9%. The remainder is mostly water. The sugar portion is mainly composed of glucose, fructose, and sucrose, no matter where it comes from and how it is produced.
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In regards to composition, caloric sweeteners are not too different from one another: Those in solid form (granulated, powder, cubes, tablets, blocks) contain over 90 percent sugar and provide about 16 calories per teaspoon. Caloric sweeteners in liquid form (syrups, nectars) have over 50 percent sugar and about 22 calories per teaspoon. They do differ in how they affect the taste and texture of foods.
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All caloric sweeteners are natural (found in nature) and, except for raw honeycomb, are processed and refined in one way or another. The favorite of all sweeteners, table sugar (granulated white sugar), is the most familiar and versatile caloric sweetener. The term sugar can cause confusion as it has many definitions, so refer to my blog post What Is Sugar, Anyway?
TYPES OF REFINED SUGAR
From Cane or Beet
Molasses are from Cane Only
1. Granulated sugar (table sugar)
2. Fine granulated sugar
3. Extra fine granulated
4. Superfine sugar (quick dissolve sugar)
5. Ultrafine sugar (baker’s special, baker’s, or caster)
6. Powdered sugar (confectioners)
7. Fondant sugar (icing or frosting sugar)
8. Sparkling sugar
9. Sanding sugar
10. Light (golden) brown sugar
11. Dark brown sugar
12. Pourable brown sugar (Brownulated)
13. White sugar cube, tablet, gourmet sugar
14. Rock sugar (sugar swizzle stick, sugar crystal)
15. Brown rock sugar (sugar swizzle stick, sugar crystal)
16. Simple syrup
17. Invert syrup (medium invert, golden syrup)
18. Full invert syrup
19. Light molasses (mild or Barbados molasses)
20. Dark molasses (full or medium molasses)
21. Blackstrap molasses
TYPES OF RAW SUGAR
All from Cane
1. Medium size crystals:
Washed or turbinado sugar, evaporated (dehydrated, dried) cane juice
2. Coarse crystals:
Demerara or turbinado sugar, evaporated (dehydrated, dried) cane juice
3. Organic sugar
4. Organic powdered sugar
5. Organic light brown sugar
6. Organic dark brown sugar
7. Demerara or raw sugar cubes
8. Raw cane syrup (organic cane syrup or invert syrup)
9. Organic molasses
TYPES OF UNREFINED SUGAR
All from Cane
1. Whole cane sugar
2. Sucanat
3. Light muscovado sugar
4. Dark muscovado sugar
5. Jaggery
6. Ground Jaggery
7. Piloncillo
8. Panela
9. Ground Panela
10. Okinawa Kokuto
11. Traditional Cane Syrup
12. Traditional (open kettle, home style) molasses
SUGAR FROM SAP, STARCH, FRUIT & MILK
Sap-derived sweeteners are concentrated fluid, nectar, or juice extracted from plants
1. Honey
2. Raw Honey
3. Organic Honey
4. Organic Raw Honey
5. Organic Light Blue Agave Nectar
6. Organic Amber Blue Agave Nectar
7. Organic Agave Nectar from Salmiana Plant
8. Organic Agave Powder
9. Organic Coconut Sugar
10. Organic Coconut Nectar
11. Golden Delicate Maple Syrup
12. Amber Rich Maple Syrup
13. Dark Robust Maple Syrup
14. Barrel-Aged Maple Syrup
15. Organic Golden Delicate Maple Syrup
16. Organic Amber Rich Maple Syrup
17. Organic Dark Robust Maple Syrup
18. Organic Very Dark Strong Maple Syrup
19. Organic Barrel-Aged Maple Syrup
20. Maple Sugar/Cream/Cubes
21. Organic Maple Sugar/Cream/Cubes
22. Sorghum Syrup or Molasses
23. Apple Sugar
24. Date Sugar
25. Organic Date Sugar
26. Date Syrup or Nectar
27. Organic Date Syrup or Nectar
28. Apple Juice Concentrate
29. Blend of Fruit Juice Concentrates
30. Pomegranate Molasses
31. Lucuma Powder
32. Fruit Powder
33. Organic Barley Malt Syrup
34. Brown rice syrup
35. Organic Brown Rice Syrup
36. Organic Cassava or Tapioca Syrup
37. Sweet Potato Syrup
38. Lactose
39. Goat Milk Lactose
40. Fructose Crystals
41. Glucose
42. Corn Syrup
43. Organic Corn Syrup
44. Corn Syrup Solids
45. High Fructose Corn Syrup (Pancake, Waffle, or Table Syrups)
46. Blends of caloric sweeteners (Table Syrups, Agave Powder, Honey Granules)
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