Sulphured molasses is made from young green sugar cane and is treated with sulfur dioxide fumes during the sugar extraction process. The sugar cane plant is harvested and stripped of its leaves. Its juice is then extracted from the canes, usually by crushing or mashing. The juice is boiled to concentrate and promote the crystallization of the sugar. The results of this first boiling and removal of sugar crystal is first molasses, which has the highest sugar content because comparatively little sugar has been extracted from the juice. Second molasses is created from a second boiling and sugar extraction, and has a slight bitter tinge to its taste.
The third boiling of the sugar syrup gives blackstrap molasses. The majority of sucrose from the original juice has been crystallized but blackstrap molasses is still mostly sugar by calories, but unlike refined sugars, it contains significant amounts of vitamins and minerals. Blackstrap molasses is a source of Calcium, Magnesium, Potassium and Iron. One tablespoon provides up to 20 percent of the daily value of each of those nutrients. Blackstrap is often sold as a health supplement, as well as being used in the manufacture of cattle feed, and for other industrial uses.
Sugar beet molasses
Molasses that comes from the sugar beet is different from cane molasses. Only the syrup left from the final crystallisation stage is called molasses; intermediate syrups are referred to as high green and low green and these are recycled within the crystallisation plant to maximise extraction. Beet molasses is about 50% sugar by dry weight, predominantly sucrose but also containing significant amounts of glucose and fructose. The non-sugar content includes many salts such as calcium, potassium, oxalate and chloride. These are either as a result of concentration from the original plant material or as a result of chemicals used in the processing. As such, it is unpalatable and is mainly used as an additive to animal feed or as a fermentation feedstock.
It is possible to extract additional sugar from beet molasses through a process known as molasses desugarisation. This technique exploits industrial scale chromatography to separate sucrose from non-sugar components. The technique is economically viable in trade protected areas where the price of sugar is supported above the world market price. As such it is practised in the US and parts of Europe.
Substitutes
Cane molasses is a common ingredient in baking, often used in baked goods such as gingerbread cookies. There are a number of substitions that can be made for molasses; for a cup of molasses the following may be used (with varying degrees of success): 1 cup honey, or ¾ cup firmly packed brown sugar, or 1 cup dark corn syrup, or 1 cup pure maple syrup.
Other forms
In the cuisines of the Middle East, molasses is produced from several other materials: carob, grape, date, pomegranate, and mulberry.
Trivia
- Molasses is a chelating agent. A rusty object placed for two weeks in a mixture of one part molasses to nine parts water will lose its rust due to the chelating action of the molasses.[citation needed]
- A famous incident involving molasses was the Boston Molasses Disaster on January 15 1919, in which a large molasses storage tank burst and flooded a neighborhood of Boston, killing 21 and injuring 150. The flood advanced as fast as 35 mph. Ironically, "slow as molasses" is a cliché for someone or something that is very slow. Due to the high viscosity of commonly available molasses at room temperature, the liquid pours quite slowly.
- The British pie treacle tart does not use any treacle but golden syrup.
- Molasses is the base material for fermentation into rum.
- Molasses can be used as a non-petroleum raw material alternative in Geo320 bitumen.
|
