What Is Turbinado Sugar?
All the best ways to use the sparkling pantry staple.
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By Grace Elkus for Food Network Kitchen
Grace is a contributing writer at Food Network.
Love a freshly-baked muffin with a sweet and crunchy cap? Or a chewy molasses cookie with a sparkly finish? You probably have turbinado sugar to thank. The versatile sugar instantly upgrades baked goods, creates a caramelized coating on fruits and can even be used as an exfoliant. Here’s everything you need to know, from what turbinado sugar is to how to use it, plus whether it's healthier for you than white sugar.
What Is Turbinado Sugar?
Turbinado sugar is a type of sugar that still contains some of its natural molasses, giving it its brown-blond color and light caramel flavor.
You know those little brown packets labeled “raw cane sugar?” Yep, that’s turbinado sugar. It’s called demerara sugar in the UK because it originated in the Demerara district of Guyana. It has large, coarse crystals and a crunchy texture, making it ideal for sprinkling onto scones or coating balls of cookie dough.
Substitutes for Turbinado Sugar
Granulated sugar can be substituted for turbinado sugar in almost every instance and, in the case of most baked goods, sanding sugar can be used (you might have some on hand for sugar cookies). Where its flavor makes sense, you can use it to make cinnamon sugar, which would taste delightful on pumpkin muffins or sprinkled onto pie crust.
Unfortunately, this simple swap doesn’t go both ways. Due to its large crystals, turbinado sugar soaks up more liquid than granulated, which can result in drier baked goods. One workaround is to process turbinado sugar in a food processor until finely ground, and then use it as a 1:1 replacement.
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How to Use Turbinado Sugar In Recipes
As a Decoration
Turbinado sugar is most commonly used to give baked goods a crunchy, sparkly topping: think muffins and loaf cakes, bread pudding, shortcakes and pie crust. In these cases, you sprinkle it on before baking. In other instances, you can use it as a garnish, such as coating the edges of frosted cupcakes.
To Create a Sugary Crust
When broiled or blow torched, turbinado sugar forms a crunchy, caramelized crust, like in the case of creme brulee or just a simple bruleed grapefruit. The same treatment would taste great on fresh peaches.
To Add Crunch to Soft Foods
If you like a sprinkle of sugar on your morning oats or other porridge you might want to try turbinado. Its larger crystals make it more noticable and add a nice textural contrast; the upside of this is that you might be satisfied with less sugar. The same applies to other soft foods like yogurt or fruit. And on foods you typically might dust with powdered sugar, like French toast or a Dutch baby pancake, you might try turbinado instead for a more dramatic taste and crunch.
Stirred Into Beverages
This coarse sugar can also be stirred into coffee or tea, and it even comes in convenient cubes if you like the light caramel flavor it adds to your morning cup. Or you can use it to make a simple syrup for cocktails that has a bit more depth of flavor than simple syrup made from white sugar.
As a Beauty Product
Though it's not an edible use, turbinado's coarse crystals can be put to work in an exfoliating sugar scrub.
How to Buy and Store Turbinado Sugar
Look for turbinado sugar in the baking aisle near the other sugars or online. You can find it in bags or packs just like other sugars are sold, or in cube form or in small packets for adding directly to coffee or tea.
Store turbinado sugar in an airtight container in a cool, dry place. Like brown sugar, it can dry out easily. If it hardens, try out these tricks, which are proven to work with brown sugar.
Is Turbinado Sugar a Raw Sugar?
Although turbinado is sometimes marketed as “raw” sugar, that term is technically inaccurate. Turbinado has been subjected to heat and processing. “Like some other common sugar varieties, turbinado has gone through slightly less refinement than white sugar,” explains Dana Angelo White, registered dietitian, nutritionist and Food Network contributor. “As a result, it maintains some of the molasses naturally present in sugar cane. This impacts the flavor, giving it more caramel and nutty notes, and it also has a coarse and crunchier texture. But this type of sugar is no more ‘raw’ than brown sugar.”
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Is Turbinado Sugar Healthier than White Sugar?
Like another baking staple, flour, it’s easy to see the darker, less refined, more textured variety of an ingredient as healthier, but the comparison between turbinado sugar and white sugar isn’t so direct. “Turbinado has the same calorie and carbohydrate content as white sugar,” nutritionist Dana White points out. “The remaining molasses that gives it a brownish hue does yield a very slight mineral content and antioxidant level not found in white sugar, but it’s not a significant amount — especially if people consume all sweeteners in moderation, as nutrition professionals recommend.”
There is, however, one area where dietary specifics between some white sugars and turbinado sugar may be important to consumers, particularly those following a vegetarian or vegan eating plan. The reason? White cane sugar can be treated with an animal byproduct known as bone char, a product that provides additional whitening to the crystals. Turbinado sugar, since part of its appeal is its blondish color, is not subjected to this additional processing. “Turbinado sugar is a vegan sugar, but I would always recommend that readers check the specific brand to make sure,” counsels White.
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