What Is Brown sugar and How Can I Use It?
If brown sugar has turned up in a recipe or caught your eye at the store, here's what you need to use it with confidence and how to choose it, cook it, store it, what to substitute, and 4,571 recipes to try it in.
What is brown sugar?
Brown sugar is a sucrose sugar product with a distinctive brown color due to the presence of molasses. It is either an unrefined or partially refined soft sugar consisting of sugar crystals with some residual molasses content, or it is produced by the addition of molasses to refined white sugar.
Brown sugar contains from 3.5% molasses ( light brown sugar )
to 6.5% molasses ( dark brown sugar ).
Brown sugar has a slightly lower caloric value by weight than white sugar due to the presence of water. One hundred grams of brown sugar contains 373 calories, as opposed to 396 calories in white sugar.
However, brown sugar packs more densely than white sugar due to the smaller crystal size and may have more calories when measured by volume. One tablespoon of brown sugar has 48 calories against 45 calories for white sugar.
Nutrition
Nutrition Facts
Serving Size 1 cup, packed packed (220g)Where found
Brown sugar is usually found in the baking supplies section or aisle of the grocery store or supermarket.
Food group
Brown sugar is a member of the Sweets US Department of Agriculture nutritional food group.
How much does brown sugar weigh?
| Amount | Weight |
|---|---|
| 1 cup, packed packed | 220 grams |
| 1 cup, unpacked unpacked | 145 grams |
| 1 tsp brownulated | 3 grams |
| 1 tsp packed packed | 4 grams |
| 1 tsp unpacked unpacked | 3 grams |
Related
Sweets
| In Chinese: | 红糖 | |
| British (UK) term: | ||
| en français: | sucre roux | |
| en español: | azucar moreno |
Recipes using brown sugar
There are 4571 recipes that contain this ingredient.
Adam's Chai Latte Ice Cream
My brother Adam loves this ice cream so much that I asked him for the recipe. It's a Chai Latte with chunks of gingerbread cookies hidden within.
Chow Mein in Chanterelle Sauce with Fresh Herbs
Vegan. I always wondered how would chanterelles taste with typical ingredients of Chinese cuisine. Now I know. Of course I wouldn't be myself if I didn't make it my way.
Almost Whole Wheat Apple Pancakes
Whole wheat apple pancakes blend half whole-wheat and half white flour with milk, eggs, and grated fresh apples for a hearty, fiber-rich breakfast pancake. Ready in 20 minutes.
Favorite Spiced Pumpkin Bread
Hands-off bread machine pumpkin bread spiced with pumpkin pie spice, yielding a tender yeast loaf with subtle sweetness and warm autumn flavor.
Josh's Chocolate Chiperoo Cookies
Chocolate chip cookies made with butter and shortening for soft centers and crisp golden edges. Loaded with semi-sweet chips and chopped nuts. Big-batch classic.
Chocolate Ice Cream With Chocolate Chunks & Pistachios
The chocolate chunks and pistachios added extra yumminess. I couldn't stop eating it. So good!
Chocolate Fudge Brownies
One-bowl fudgy cocoa brownies with brown sugar and chopped walnuts. Melted butter and cocoa replace bar chocolate for a deeply chocolatey brownie that's ready in 35 minutes.
Chocolate Waffles
Chocolate waffles bake up crisp outside and tender inside, with cocoa, brown sugar, and a splash of rum for depth. Cake flour keeps them light. A brunch-meets-dessert waffle made for piling on berries, cream, or syrup.
Mommy's Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
Soft-baked oatmeal chocolate chip cookies with warm cinnamon and nutmeg spices, ready in under 30 minutes for chewy or crispy texture
Charlies Delicious Brownies
Charlie's brownies are one-bowl easy: dump, beat for a minute, and bake, then top with a glossy chocolate fudge icing. Brown sugar and melted unsweetened chocolate make them rich, and the icing seals the deal.
Streusel Snack Apple Muffins
Apple oat muffins topped with cinnamon-brown sugar streusel. Quick oats add hearty texture, fresh apple keeps the crumb moist. One-bowl batter, ready in 30 minutes.
Streusel Snack Apple Muffins
Apple oat muffins topped with cinnamon-brown sugar streusel. Quick oats add hearty texture, fresh apple keeps the crumb moist. One-bowl batter, ready in 30 minutes.
White Chocolate Chip Cookies
White chocolate chip cookies built on a deep chocolate dough loaded with creamy white chocolate chips. Sour cream keeps them soft, melted semi-sweet gives them brownie-like depth.
T.M.'s Gingerbread Cookies
Classic roll-out gingerbread cookies with ginger, nutmeg, and molasses, perfect for cookie cutters and holiday decorating. The traditional Christmas cookie kids and grown-ups both love to ice.
Holiday Chocolate Chip Cookies
Holiday chocolate chip cookies follow the classic Toll House blueprint: butter, brown sugar, semisweet chips, and a fistful of chopped nuts. Crisp at the edges, soft in the middle, ready in 30 minutes. The cookie tin standard.
Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies
Chocolate peanut butter cookies bake brown sugar, peanut butter dough loaded with chocolate chips. Soft chewy centers and crisp edges, ready in under an hour.
Favourite Chocolate Crackles
Chocolate crackle cookies: fudgy chocolate dough rolled in powdered sugar that splits into white-and-black crackle patterns as they bake. Holiday cookie tin classic.
Peanut Butter Snack Cookies
Classic peanut butter snack cookies with the signature fork-pressed crisscross pattern. Crisp edges, soft middles, and a deep peanut flavor. Makes three dozen for the cookie jar.
Curried Pumpkin Soup
Curried pumpkin soup with sweet pumpkin puree, golden sauteed onions, warm curry powder, and a swirl of half-and-half. A silky, autumn-spiced soup garnished with pepitas or chives.
Peanut Butter Chocolate Cookies
Peanut butter chocolate cookies blend melted chocolate into the dough for double chocolate-peanut flavor in every bite. Cross-hatched and baked into thick, chewy 3-inch rounds.
Aunt's Chocolate Chip Raisin Cookies
Chocolate chip raisin cookies baked low and slow for crisp golden edges and chewy centers. Two cups each of plump raisins and semi-sweet chips packed into every cookie.
Blueberry Orange Muffins
Tender breakfast muffins bursting with fresh blueberries and bright orange zest for a bakery-style morning treat in under an hour
Favorite Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies
Chewy chocolate chip oatmeal cookies combine the best of both classics. Quick oats and butter-flavored shortening make 40 soft, hearty cookies perfect for lunchboxes or after-school snacks.
Super Chocolate Chip Cookies
Giant chocolate chip cookies baked in foil pans to hold their extra-thick shape. Butter and shortening blend creates crispy edges and soft, melty centers loaded with chocolate.
