Sugar!

Sugar not only sweetens food, it adds flavor, texture, decoration and it helps food to brown easier through caramelization process. It works to make baked goods more appealing in color, more moist and tender in texture, and it works to stabilize egg white meringues when making pavlovas and the like.

Sugar can be categorized by color and granularity.

White Sugar

1. Confectioners Sugar, Icing Sugar or Powdered Sugar
   It is also referred to as xxx to 10x sugar (more X's indicating finer grains), and the sugar is ground further into a fine powder that can come in different degrees of fineness. Confectioners sugar dissolves immediately in liquid, and is often used to make icing and frosting for baked goods. Because powdered sugar clumps up easily, there is always a small amount of cornstarch added as an anti-caking agent. If the recipe calls for pure powdered sugar, such as for French macarons, you can use pure granulated sugar and grind it finer in a coffee grinder, or crush it in a mortar and pestle by hand.


2. Snow Sugar or Doughnut Sugar
   This is similar to powdered sugar, only it doesn't melt as easily as it consists of dextrose, starch and anti-binding agents to retain its structure when dusted on pastries that require refrigeration.  Commercial bakers use this on cakes, doughnuts and other pastries for decorative purposes.


3. Caster Sugar 
   Caster sugar is finer granulated white sugar. Because the crystals are finer, they dissolve quicker than regular granulated sugar, which makes it ideal for making meringues, syrups, and cocktails.


4. Granulated Sugar 
   It's also called refined, table, or white sugar. When people talk about "sugar," this is usually what is referred to. It's the most common type of sugar for daily all purpose use. It is made from sugar cane or sugar beets (99.95% Sucrose).


5. Pearl Sugar, Nib Sugar, or Hail Sugar 
   Pearl sugar is a opaque-colored specialty sugar that comes in different sizes by brand, often used in Scandinavia and a few other countries in Northern Europe. It is not completely round, but comes in large chunks and has a coarse, hard texture. Because it is heavily compacted, it holds its shape, and doesn't melt when exposed to moisture or high heat. Pearl sugar is commonly used to decorate pastries, cookies, and buns. Sprinkling it over the top of a bread or pastry or mixing it into the dough will give the baking goods extra crunch, sweet bursts and a nicer finishing aesthetic appeal. 


6. Cubed Sugar or Sugar Cubes
   Sugar cubes are compressed blocks of sugar that are designed to dissolve easily in hot liquid. The individual grains of sugar are not held tightly together.

Multi-Color Sugar

1. Sanding Sugar 
   It is used mainly for decorating with its colorfulness and large crystals, which are resistant to heat. The crystals add crunchiness to the texture. Sanding sugar can be found in different colors for decoration.

Brown Sugar

Raw brown sugars range in the amount of processing they receive, but they are brown because, unlike white sugar, they have not had all of the molasses chemically and physically removed, except the "light brown sugar" and "dark brown sugar", which are made of refined sugar with a little molasses added back. The least processed of the brown sugars—Rapadura or panela—often still has the minerals and enzymes intact.

1. Cane Sugar 
   Cane sugar is produced solely from sugarcane and is minimally processed. It has a larger grain, golden brown color, and it is usually more expensive than regular white sugar. Use the same amount as you would granulated sugar when you substitute it.


2. Turbinado Sugar 
   Turbinado Sugar is a minimally processed raw cane sugar that's been steam-cleaned with a light molasses flavoring. This sugar variety has non-uniform, medium-size, light-brown crystals. Though its color is similar to standard brown sugar, it's not the same thing. Turbinado sugar has a delicate caramel flavor and can substitute for granulated sugar in recipes if the color is not going to be an issue. Use the same amount you would granulated sugar.


3. Light Brown Sugar 
   Light brown sugar is refined white sugar with a little molasses added in. It has a slightly sticky, wet, sandy texture and a delicate caramel flavor. It adds color and more flavor for dishes and baked goods. Use the same amount when substitute it for granulated sugar in recipes. To substitute for light brown sugar with dark brown sugar, mix 2 parts of dark brown sugar and 1 part of white granulated sugar. Or use one cup granulated sugar with 1 tablespoon of molasses to substitute one cup light brown sugar.


4. Dark Brown Sugar 
   Like its lighter counterpart, dark brown sugar is refined white sugar with molasses added in. It contains more molasses than light brown sugar, resulting in a stronger, more intense flavor. Light and dark brown sugar can be used interchangeably. You can substitute brown sugar with granulated with a little molasses. Use one cup granulated sugar with 2 tablespoons of molasses to substitute one cup dark brown sugar.


5. Demerara Sugar or Demerera Sugar
   Demerara sugar is a variety of raw cane sugar that is partially refined and is originally from Guyana. It is very close to Turbinado Sugar, but with a larger, coarser grain and uniform crystals. Like Turbinado sugar, it has a golden brown color and a natural molasses flavor. Use it for coffee or tea, or as a topping on baked goods to add complex and round sweet flavor.


6. Muscovado Sugar or Barbados Sugar 
   Muscovado sugar is a British specialty unrefined brown cane sugar and is very dark brown with a particularly strong molasses flavor. The minimally processed crystals are slightly coarser and stickier in texture than “regular” brown sugar. It has a much stronger and distinct flavor that is wonderful in barbecue sauce, marinades, and savory dishes. 

Sugar You May Not Know

1. Chinese Rock Sugar (
   冰糖)
    or Lump Sugar 
   Chinese Rock Sugar is made by cooking the refined sugar until it starts to color. It is then cooled and solidified as an opaque, gold-colored sugar lumps. Traditionally it comes in irregular lumps of crystallized sugar of varying sizes that you have to whack before using. The crystals can be up to 2 1/2 cm (1 inch) wide. These days you can find it in different degrees of fineness and very easy to use. It has a clear taste, with no discernible caramel tones. It is rounder and not as in-your-face sweet as regular white granulated sugar. Because it's less sweet, it doesn't overwhelm the flavour of tea or dishes as much as white sugar can. 


2. Coconut Sugar 
   It's the same as palm sugar.


3. Jaggery Sugar or Java sugar 
   It's a variety of palm sugar. Jaggery is a traditional non-centrifugal cane sugar consumed in Asia, India and Africa. It is a concentrated product of date, cane juice, or palm sap (see palm sugar) without separation of the molasses and crystals, and can vary from golden brown to dark brown in color. It contains up to 50% sucrose, up to 20% invert sugars, and up to 20% moisture, with the remainder made up of other insoluble matter, such as wood ash, proteins, and bagasse fibers. Jaggery is mixed with other ingredients, such as peanuts, condensed milk, coconut, and white sugar, to produce several locally marketed and consumed delicacies.


4. Kurozato (
   黒砂糖) 
   Sugar and Kuromitsu (
   黒蜜) 
   Syrup
   It is typically made from unrefined Okinawan kurozatō ("black sugar"), and is a central ingredient in many sweet Chinese or Japanese dishes.  Chinese and Japanese black sugar is very close to Muscodavo sugar with minimal processing and most minerals intact, which is believed to have health benefits. It is one of the ingredients commonly used in Asian desserts and pastries. For example it is used in making steamed cakes, muffins, wagashi, and it serves well with kuzumochi, fruits, ice cream, pancakes, sweet tonic soups, etc.


5. Maltose or Malt Sugar 
   More prosaically, it is a sugar made from grains by malting them. The grains might include barley, rice or wheat. It can come as a thick, sticky clear or amber color syrup sold in tins or tubs, or as a white or off-white crystalline powder with no odor to it. It is less sweet than honey, and only 1/3 as sweet as white sugar. It dissolves easily in water. Malt Sugar is commonly used in Chinese cooking, breads, sweets or pastries. For example, it can be diluted with water and brushed on the skins of ducks in making Peking Duck.
   
   
   Moreover, diastatis malt is used by bread makers to feed the yeast and improve the texture.  Nondiastatic malt is used in bread as a flavoring and preservative.


6. Misri Sugar or Mishri Sugar 
   Misri refers to crystallized sugar lumps, and type of confectionery mineral, which has its origins in India and Persia, also known as rock sugar or lump sugar elsewhere. It is used in India as a type of candy, or used to sweeten milk or tea..


7. Palm Sugar or Coconut Sugar 
   It comes in block should crumbled when you squeeze it with fingers. 
   Palm sugar was originally made from the sugary sap of the Palmyra palm, as well as the date palm or Sugar date palm. Now it is also made from the sap of the sago and coconut palms and may be sold as “coconut sugar.” Date sugar can also be made with the fruit of the palm by pulverizing very dry dates, but note that sugar made this way will not dissolve well in liquid.
   
   
   Palm sugar varies in color from a light golden color to a rich dark brown. It tends to be extremely grainy, with dried forms being highly crumbly, and it is typically minimally processed.


8. Panela Sugar or Panocha Sugar or Piloncillo or Rapadura  
   It is the least processed of all the cane sugars, and is rich in dietary iron. Unrefined, it is commonly used in Mexico (called Piloncillo) and in Central and Latin America, where it has been around for at least 500 years. Made from crushed sugar cane, the juice is collected, boiled and poured into molds, where it hardens into blocks. Panela is also known as rapadura in Portuguese.


9. Sucanat Sugar
   Sucanat (a contraction of "Sucre de canne naturel") is a brand name for a variety of whole cane sugar that was introduced by Pronatec in 1978. Unlike refined and processed white cane sugar and brown cane sugar, but similar to panela and muscovado, Sucanat retains its molasses content..

Spiced Sugar

1. Cinnamon Sugar 
   Mix 1 part ground cinnamon with 7 parts of granulated sugar.


2. Maple Sugar
   It's made from dehydrated and granulated maple syrup and is often sprinkled on pastries, cereal, pancakes and toast. 


3. Vanilla Sugar 
   Put the natural vanilla bean in the sugar for a week and you'll have this lovely scented sugar.

For Sandwiches, Rolls, Sushi, Wraps ...

Here is what you can use to wrap up a quick meal in minutes. Use any of these interchangeably to make rolls, sandwiches and wraps in my recipes:

Ready to Use:

• Artisan or Rustic Bread, Baguette, Ciabatta, Sourdough, sliced
• Bánh Mì Bread (Vietnamese bread)
• Chinese Steamed Flat Bun
• Crepe
• Egg Roll Wrapper (Japanese-style thin omelette)
• English Muffin (Try my English Muffin recipe)
• Flatbread
• Nori or Roasted Seaweed Sheet
• Pancake (thin)
• Pita Bread
• Sandwich Bread
• Buns and Rolls
• Tortilla
• Waffles

Banh Mi Bread	Chinese Steamed Buns	Crepe

Egg Roll Wrapper	English Muffin	Flatbread

Nori Seaweed	Pancake (Thin)	Pita Bread

To Be Cooked:

• Chinese-style Pancake (homemade or frozen)
• Dumpling Skin or Dumpling Wrap
• Pie Crust
• Puff Pastry Sheet (What) 
• Spring Roll Shells, Wrappers or Spring Roll Pastry Sheet (frozen)
• Rice Spring Roll Paper Sheet or Banh Trang (dehydrated)
• Rice Noodle or Banh Pho Flat Rice Noodle (fresh)
• Tofu Skin or Dried Beancurd Sheet (Yuba in Japanese and  豆腐皮 or 腐竹 in Chinese)
• Wonton Skin/Wraps or Wonton Wrapper

Chinese Pancake	Dumpling Wrap	Pie Crust

Spring Roll Wrapper	Rice Spring Roll Paper	Rice Noodle Sheet

Dried Tofu Skin	Wonton Wrap

Puff Pastry Sheets!

Puff Pastry Sheets 

This buttery pastry is a light, flaky, rich pastry made by rolling dough with fat (butter or lard) and folding it repeatedly to form layers. Its versatility extends from sweet to savory, from desserts to main courses, from soup crust to hors d'oeuvres, including but not limited to canapés, tarts, turnovers, straws, breadsticks, rolls, puffs, palmiers, hot pies, pizzas and napoleons. They are great for bite-size desserts, or serving cups for appetizers.

To make puff pastry from scratch, it requires serious time to roll and chill in between the repeated folding process. Store bought frozen pastry sheets are pre-made dough to save the day without all the hours and elbow grease.

What to Buy

There are three main brands of puff pastry. I prefer all-butter pastry versions over those with vegetable shortenings for health reason and better taste. The all-butter versions also keep their flavor longer when cooled. 

How to Use and Store
     - Keep frozen until use
     - Thaw completely
     - Keep it cold while rolling

Needless to say, you should keep them in the freezer until ready to use. 

Frozen puff pastry sheet needs to completely thaw before you use it. If you can, take the package of puff out of the freezer and let it thaw in the refrigerator overnight. If you are pressed for time, set the pastry on the counter for about 35 to 45 minutes to thaw at room temperature, but keep a close eye on it as you want to catch the moment when it is pliable enough to work with but not so warm that the butter starts to melt and weep. 

The main thing is to keep it cold while you are working, so the layers of butter remain firm. Stow the unused sheets in the refrigerator until you get to them. If the pastry gets too soft while you're rolling or cutting it, simply return it to the fridge or freezer to firm it up. If you're trying to create a specific shape, keep the pastry as cold as possible and it will be easier to make precise cuts. Use a sharp knife, a pizza wheel, a pastry cutter, or simple cookie cutters, and if you're after really straight lines, pull out a ruler or use a straight-edged baking sheet as a guide.

How to Roll 

Most frozen puff pastry comes in folded sheets. Unfold the pastry gently after it's thawed, and if you see any tears or holes, use your fingers—and a little water if necessary—to gently squeeze the pastry back together.

If your box comes with one large sheet, you can fold it crosswise in half and roll it out to create more layers.  Cut out what you need, wrap the rest tightly and freeze leftovers for later usage.

To prevent sticking, roll puff pastry out on a lightly floured surface, using a lightly floured rolling pin. Afterward, gently brush off any excess flour. If you're making a sweet recipe, you can use sugar or cinnamon sugar in lieu of flour, and for recipes made with cheese, you can use finely grated cheese. 

Be careful not to roll puff pastry too thin, especially if making any kind of pizza or tart—the pastry needs to be sturdy enough to support the toppings and stay crisp.

How to Bake

If you're blind-baking a pie or tart shell and want to keep the inside from rising as much as the edges, use a fork to prick the surface of the dough (like you would a regular pie crust). The pastry will still be light and flaky—it just won't puff up as much. If you need straight, even sheets of puff pastry for making a napoleon, bake the puff pastry between two baking sheets so it bakes into completely flat pieces. 

Just before baking, brush your puff pastry with an egg glaze (one large egg lightly beaten with about 1 teaspoon water) to give it an attractive sheen. An egg glaze can also be used like an edible glue to seal the pastry edges for turnovers, empanadas, or any stuffed pocket-style pastry; just brush a thin layer along the edges and press them together gently.

Keep Liquid Out

Puff pastry is delicate, so be careful not to weigh it down with excessive toppings or ingredients that could release a lot of liquid and make the pastry soggy. Be particularly cautious with sticky fillings or ones that could overflow and make a mess of your baking sheets. And no matter what you're baking, line your baking sheets with parchment or a silicone baking mat, such as a Silpat, to prevent sticking.

Save the Scraps

If you have any pieces of puff pastry left over, combine them and roll them out to make palmiers or cheese straws. Leftover pastry won't puff up quite as much and it may be a little uneven, but that's less important with smaller shapes.

Puff Pastry Sheet versus Phyllo Dough

Phyllo (Filo) Dough 

There is also frozen phyllo (or filo, means leaf in Greek) dough in the same section, that is not to be confused with puff pastry sheets. Phyllo dough is a very thin unleavened dough used for making pastries such as baklava, spanakopita and börek in Balkan, Greek, Middle Eastern and Eastern Mediterranean cuisines. 

Phyllo-based pastries are made by layering many sheets of phyllo/filo brushed with melted butter or olive oil; the pastry is then baked. When it bakes up, the layers get airy, crisp, and flaky.

Phyllo dough can also make great edible serving cups for appetizers or desserts but phyllo dough and puff pastry sheets are different and can't be used interchangeably. Since phyllo dough consists of many fragile tissue-thin layers, it is delicate and won't hold the shape nearly as well as the puff pastry.

How to Use and Store 

Although you may be able to find fresh phyllo in Greek markets, they are easy to find in the freezer section in flat squares or rolls. Defrost in the refrigerator and not on the counter since it can get gummy. The main thing is to keep it from drying out. Keep the sheets covered with plastic wrap or a damp towel while you're working, and don't be discouraged if a sheet rips — just patch it back together and move on, it'll bake up just fine!

Note that don't refreeze phyllo, as it will get brittle.

Note:

• Vegetable shortenings are partially hydrogenated, which means they are infused with hydrogen atoms to create an oil that is solid at room temperature but melts at cooking temperature. The chemical reaction turns the oil in the shortening into trans fats.

Browning Tips.

• Don't overcrowd the pan. My rule of thumb is that the food should cover 90% of the bottom of the saute pan and somewhere between 85% to 90% is okay. All the food should be in contact with the bottom of pan, the heat source, in one single layer. If your pan is too small, cook in batches.


• Heat up the pan without the oil first. The pan is not as delicate as the oil, which has a smoke point and a flash point.


• It is a high heat cooking method so choose the oil accordingly.


• Heat up the pan for about 3 min and make sure there is no liquid before you add the oil. Some people would drop a little water to test if the pan is hot enough. If you do so, make sure the water is all gone. Pour the water out or cook it off before you add the oil.


• Don't add oil into a hot pan with very little liquid because the little droplets of water in hot oil will burst and might splash hot oil onto you. This is also why you should always pat the food dry in high heat dry-cooking with fat method.


• If you overload the pan, the ingredients make the pan's temperature plummet and the foods end up steaming in its juice rather than properly browned. If there is too much juice in the pan, the temperature will remain at 212F boiling point until all the juice is vaporized and before we see any serious browning. All the extra cooking time while waiting for the juice to be gone would have already cooked the food to the ideal doneness internally without yielding the desirable browning and flavors. If you keep cooking to have the browning, the food would most likely end up overcooked, dry, juiceless and grainy.


• When you put the food in a pan, thinking the pan and oil have been heated hot enough, but you see juice coming out of the food and you don't hear the signature "Psssst....." sizzling, pick up the food immediately and let the pan heat up to cook off the liquid. Or place the food aside, and pour off the liquid before you make the second attempt to brown. This way, you won't over cook it. Bottom line, there can't be any liquid in the pan when you want the color and flavor.


• If the food cover less than 80% of the pan, the area without food would overheat and burn the oil. For our one-pot club members, use something that won't release liquid but can add flavors such as ginger, green onions or carrots to keep those areas occupied. Cut them into bigger thicker slices so it's easier to handle because you may have to keep flipping and moving these little helpers to avoid burning them (for this reason, I won't use onions), while you leave the meat undisturbed for 4-5 minutes. If the aromatics brown too fast, pick them up and place them on the meat to cool down.


• When you brown the meat, you need to leave those meat alone for 4-5 minutes on medium to medium-high heat without messing with them. You need to let the heat do its thing if you want the Maillard Reaction to happen. When you hear the sizzling sound quiets down, it means all the liquid in contact with the pan is gone and the temperature is rising fast. That tells you to check more often now, about every 1-2 minutes.


• Pat the meat or fish dry before cooking. Surface moisture creates steam when it hits a hot pan or grill and impeding browning until the liquid is gone.


• Run your knife like a squeegee against the skin of fish or meat to scrape off the water trapped in it and pat dry to be sure.


• To draw more moisture out of the surface, you can sprinkle salt on all sides of the fish, chicken, or meat. Leave it in the refrigerator uncovered. For fish, 30 minutes to a couple of hours will do. For meat or chicken, you can do this overnight to 24 hours ahead. Beside making browning more effective, this method will give you crispy skin when baking or roasting them.


• Yes, that means you can also brown food in the oven. A broiler is the same idea as an inverted grill, a source of concentrated quick-cooking heat. Chicken and meat take about 10-12 minutes to broil at 450F to 500F. You will want to check halfway through, after 5-6 minutes and flip them.

Why Browning...