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Sugar / Coconut palm sugar

2K views 17 replies 8 participants last post by  teamfat 
#1 ·
I was with a friend today who was telling me about how much she enjoys using coconut sugar . She likes to use it when making  tuiles (sprinkle sugar on them when hot) and other dessert dishes.

So I was wondering it anyone has any experience with this sugar ? Since I have not tasted it , what is like ? Is it a good sugar to bake with ? 

My other question : Is there a sugar that you prefer over the other ?

Thanks for any info.

Petals.
 
#2 ·
I love palm sugar. To me the taste is somewhat between white sugar and brown sugar, but with a more rounded and subtle flavor profile. IMO, white sugar has no flavor, just sweet. Brown sugar has flavor, but can be overpowering with it's molasses presence. Palm sugar falls in between these just right, the best of both worlds; sweet but with favor. In addition, it has a low melt point and high burn point.
 
#4 ·
Thank you Cheflayne and Phatch for your replies.

Those are the answers I was looking for....especially taste wise and what it is used for ....

The sugar I saw today looked like this :

Dry, there was no moisture in it what so ever.
 
#7 ·
I am unable to get the sugar in a cake . I went to 3 stores ( one was a health food store ) and they did not have it. I am guessing it could be found in Chinatown .

Right now I have 3 cups to play with, not enough.

Somehow I am doubting I will get less than $2.00 a cake.

I saw this video last night

Petals.
 
#9 ·
Thank you for checking that out. I will be near Kim Phoa this weekend so I will pass by. 

I called a place by the name of  Panier Vert  (health food store) and the owner said that 4  woman were in his store asking  for liquid palm sugar. He said that one of the woman wants to use it as her husband is a diabetic and that she would rather use that then refined sugar.  I asked him about the cakes and he said he would look into it.
 
#10 ·
I've used palm sugar in some Thai and Vietnamese dishes. The stuff I have is hard to use. It doesn't go as hard as brown sugar, but is not free flowing. Taste is subtle.
to make it more pliable, microwave it for a few seconds. It will not be like granulated sugar but will be more easy to spoon and work with.
 
#12 ·
I was with a friend today who was telling me about how much she enjoys using coconut sugar . She likes to use it when making tuiles (sprinkle sugar on them when hot) and other dessert dishes.

So I was wondering it anyone has any experience with this sugar ? Since I have not tasted it , what is like ? Is it a good sugar to bake with ?

My other question : Is there a sugar that you prefer over the other ?

Thanks for any info.

Petals.
Hi,

My wife is also using coconut sugar for her baking. She said, it is really good and it is a one is to one serving with the Cane Sugar. She is using this brand 35 Coco Sugar by cocoessentials.com. She is also using that for her coffee and tea. Actually, I am also using for my coffee =). She also said, this is not available in any organic market yet, her friend told her that you can only buy this from Amazon.
 
#13 · (Edited)
Coconut sugar and palm sugar are not the same, although the right names are not always used - which can make the issue confusing. @petalsandcoco what you're showing is coconut sugar, while the cake form showed by @cheflayne is palm sugar.

• Palm sugar has an elegant, subtle flavor which makes it quite close to regular sugar both in flavor and in sweetness.

• Coconut sugar has a very strong flavor profile, almost like a burnt taste, which makes it quite far from regular sugar. It's also nowhere near as sweet as regular sugar. In my experience it does not work as a 1:1 replacement of sugar cane if your goal is to achieve the same level of sweetness.

Personally, I love palm sugar, and also find that it has a very subtle flavor profile. I use it all the time for cooking Thai or Vietnamese savory dishes. On the other hand, I'm not a big fan of coconut sugar, which I've used for baking cookies. It's not bad mind you, and you should try it, you may like it, it's just... nothing fantastic in my opinion, and quite an "in your face" flavor, that's not very interesting.
 
#14 ·
I don't taste the difference between palm coco sugar and real coconut sugar. The only thing that I noticed from the other coconut sugar that are available in the market they have residue at the bottom of my coffee or my tea. It looks dirt and burnt part of the coconut. Since I wasn't sure if it is coming from the coffee or coconut sugar. What I did, I grab a clear glass of water and put the coconut sugar for 3 minutes then I stirred it around and I was surprised there's a lot of residue and dirt. If I am not mistaken the brand are known brands that you can see in the market, but the one that my wife got from Amazon, believe me it is night and day. It is clear and no residue at all and the level of sweetness for me is the same as the cane sugar. For a cup of coffee I put 2 teaspoons.
 
#15 ·
I don't taste the difference between palm coco sugar and real coconut sugar.
Then perhaps we're not talking about the same two sugars, because there's a huge, unmistakable difference in taste between the two (look at the different pictures by petals and cheflayne. They don't have the same texture, the same sweetness or the same taste at all. Or maybe the coconut sugar you got was more refined than the one I got (I got mine from Trader Joe's).
 
#16 ·
Then perhaps we're not talking about the same two sugars, because there's a huge, unmistakable difference in taste between the two (look at the different pictures by petals and cheflayne. They don't have the same texture, the same sweetness or the same taste at all. Or maybe the coconut sugar you got was more refined than the one I got (I got mine from Trader Joe's).
You could be correct, but for me the one we got is way better compared the one that you got from the market. I forgot to mention, I saw this brand also in Irvine, CA Farmers Market and they said, this was newly introduce in the market and they are using it personally.
 
#18 ·
Is there a face palm sugar available?  ( Couldn't find a face palm graphic suitable for use here. )

Seriously, I had some eggplant in spicy garlic sauce at a Chinese restuarant the other day, and the sauce had a sweetness to it that was different, but I can't describe the difference. Could well have been palm sugar.  I may have to experiment a bit myself.

mjb.
 
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