Benefits and Uses of Invert Sugar for Food Businesses
Your establishment prides itself on offering unique foods your customers can’t live without. You want them to think of you when they long for something sweet to tempt their taste buds. As a result, using the highest quality ingredients to enhance the flavour of your foods is a must. Invert sugar is often used to sweeten and improve the quality of various pastries. If this is an ingredient you aren’t familiar with, you might wonder what makes it so special and how it stands out from regular table sugar. Here we look at the benefits and uses of inverted sugar and why it is something you might want to start using to improve the appeal of your baked goods, desserts, sweet beverages and more.
What is invert sugar?
Invert sugar is known by many different names including inverted sugar, invert sugar syrup, or trimoline. Unlike traditional sugars you might be used to cooking with, invert sugar comes in liquid form. It is a liquid syrup made from white sugar and water prepared by blending sucrose with water and heating it until the bonds between glucose and fructose break. The end result is a highly versatile, sweet ingredient ideal for use in many different recipes.
Benefits of Invert Sugar
Invert sugar is the sweetener of choice by many chefs and foodservice businesses as it can be used like other sugars and sweeteners but with some added benefits over its competition including:
- It is more cost-effective as it is much sweeter than other sugar substitutes, so you can use it sparingly
- Its liquid form helps improve the texture of baked goods
- Invert sugar increases the shelf life of baked items, so you can serve or sell items such as cakes and sweetbreads longer knowing you won’t affect the quality of the products you serve as they won’t dry out as quickly
- Because it is resistant to crystallization it is ideal for products such as ice cream, sorbet, icing, fondant and ganache
- It can last longer on your shelves, so you have waste due to spoilage
- It has reduced viscosity when compared to liquid sweeteners without invert sugar
You can not only improve the flavour and consistency of your baked goods and frozen treats but also save money and increase your bottom line. You experience less waste, have longer-lasting products that maintain their quality, while also using an ingredient with a longer shelf life.
Uses of Invert Sugar
Invert sugar can be used to create a long list of foods and beverages whether it is on its own or in combination with other sweeteners. It is used by many different food service businesses to sweeten a variety of common foods from premade baked goods and frozen treats to delicious hand-made pastries, breads and cakes.
Invert Sugar in Desserts
Many pastry chefs choose invert sugar over other sweeteners as it makes desserts softer and chewier. This is because it maintains moisture more easily than other sugars. As mentioned, an added benefit is that it lengthens the shelf life of baked goods, keeping desserts from going to waste quickly because they won’t dry out as fast. Invert sugar are most commonly used in these desserts:
- Cookies
- Brownies
- Ice cream
- Sorbet
- Sweetbreads
This makes it an ideal ingredient for bakeries and companies that produce their own line of frozen desserts.
Invert Sugar in Candy
Because invert sugar can slow down and frequently fully resist crystallization, it is also the chosen sweetener for many candy producers. Some popular items containing invert sugar include:
- Fudge
- Toffee
- Marshmallows
- Caramels
- Taffy
These treats are always more enjoyable when they are smooth and munchy, yet not too difficult to chew.
Invert Sugar in Beverages
This syrup sweetener is perfect for beverages as it dissolves well. It can be used for a long list of drinks including:
- Beer
- Wine
- Cocktails
- Mocktails
- Lattes
- Iced coffees
It’s also excellent for flavoured syrups so customers can create their favourite lattes at home.
How to store invert sugar?
Invert sugar is easy to store in both commercial freezers and refrigerators. It can then be used once it reaches room temperature. If you are in a rush you can also heat it quickly in the microwave, stirring it every 10 seconds to reach the ideal texture. It has a long shelf life of up to six months.
So there you have it. Although there is a wide assortment of sweeteners available, invert sugar is one of the very best. It is ideal in many applications from baked goods to frozen treats and beverages to candy. It is easy to store and also provides a pleasant moistness to popular favourites like cookies and brownies. As a bonus, it can help keep baked goods fresher longer. Thanks to a higher thickness, bolder sweetness and easy accessibility, it is the ideal way to bring your products to the next level.