cooking Cooking, also known as cookery or professionally as the culinary arts, is the art, science and craft of using heat to make food more palatable, digestible, nutritious, or Food safety, safe. Cooking techniques and ingredients vary widely, from ...

, syrup (less commonly sirup; from ; , beverage, wine and ) is a condiment that is a thick, viscous liquid consisting primarily of a solution of

sugar Sugar is the generic name for sweet-tasting, soluble carbohydrates, many of which are used in food. Simple sugars, also called monosaccharides, include glucose Glucose is a sugar with the Chemical formula#Molecular formula, molecul ...

in water, containing a large amount of dissolved sugars but showing little tendency to deposit

crystal A crystal or crystalline solid is a solid material whose constituents (such as atoms, molecules, or ions) are arranged in a highly ordered microscopic structure, forming a crystal lattice that extends in all directions. In addition, macros ...

s. In its concentrated form, its consistency is similar to that of molasses. The viscosity arises from the multiple

hydrogen bond In chemistry, a hydrogen bond (H-bond) is a specific type of molecular interaction that exhibits partial covalent character and cannot be described as a purely electrostatic force. It occurs when a hydrogen (H) atom, Covalent bond, covalently b ...

s between the dissolved sugar, which has many hydroxyl (OH) groups.

Types

There are a range of syrups used in food production, including: * Agave syrup, made from

agave ''Agave'' (; ; ) is a genus of monocots native to the arid regions of the Americas. The genus is primarily known for its succulent and xerophytic species that typically form large Rosette (botany), rosettes of strong, fleshy leaves. Many plan ...

stem * Cane syrup, made from sugar canes * Chocolate syrup *

Corn syrup Corn syrup is a food syrup that is made from the starch of corn/maize and contains varying amounts of sugars: glucose, maltose and higher oligosaccharides, depending on the grade. Corn syrup is used in foods to soften Mouthfeel, texture, add vol ...

* Glucose syrup * Golden syrup, a by-product of refining crystallized

* High fructose corn syrup, widely used in the US *

Maple syrup Maple syrup is a sweet syrup made from the sap of maple trees. In cold climates, these trees store starch in their trunks and roots before winter; the starch is then converted to sugar that rises in the sap in late winter and early spring. Ma ...

* Table syrup

Uses

For beverages

A variety of beverages call for sweetening to offset the tartness of some juices used in the drink recipes. Granulated sugar does not dissolve easily in cold drinks or ethyl alcohol. Since syrups are liquids, they are easily mixed with other liquids in mixed drinks, making them superior alternatives to granulated sugar.

Simple sugar syrups

=Simple syrup

= Simple syrup (also known as sugar syrup, or bar syrup) is a basic sugar-and-water syrup. It is used by bartenders as a sweetener to make cocktails, and as a yeast feeding agent in ethanol fermentation. The ratio of sugar to water is 1:1 by volume for normal simple syrup, but can get up to 2:1 for rich simple syrup. For pure sucrose the saturation limit is about 5:1 ( sucrose to water).

=Demerara syrup

= Combining demerara sugar, a type of natural brown sugar, with water in this process produces demerara syrup. Sugar substitutes such as

honey Honey is a sweet and viscous substance made by several species of bees, the best-known of which are honey bees. Honey is made and stored to nourish bee colonies. Bees produce honey by gathering and then refining the sugary secretions of pl ...

or agave nectar can also be used to make syrups.

Spice In the culinary arts, a spice is any seed, fruit, root, Bark (botany), bark, or other plant substance in a form primarily used for flavoring or coloring food. Spices are distinguished from herbs, which are the leaves, flowers, or stems of pl ...

s can be added to the ingredients during the process, resulting in a spiced simple syrup.

=Gomme syrup

= ''Gomme syrup'' (or ''gum syrup''; is French for "gum") is a boiled mixture of sugar and water, made with the highest ratio of sugar to water possible. In old recipes, gum arabic is added, in the belief that it prevents the sugar from crystallizing and adds a smooth texture. Some recipes omit the gum arabic, thus are just simple syrup, considering the gum undesired, or to reduce cost. ''Gomme syrup'' is an ingredient commonly used in mixed drinks. In Japan, liquid sweeteners for iced coffee are called ''gum syrup'', although they are actually simple syrup which contains no gum arabic. Ingredients vary by brand; some are glucose–fructose syrup, some are sugar, or blends of both.

Flavored syrup

Flavored syrups are made by infusing simple syrups with flavoring agents during the cooking process. A wide variety of flavoring agents can be used, often in combination with each other, such as herbs, spices, or aromatics. For instance, ''syrups' aromatics'' is prepared by adding certain quantities of orange flavorings and

cinnamon Cinnamon is a spice obtained from the inner bark of several tree species from the genus ''Cinnamomum''. Cinnamon is used mainly as an aromatic condiment and flavouring additive in a wide variety of cuisines, sweet and savoury dishes, biscuits, b ...

water to simple syrup. This type of syrup is commonly used at coffee bars, especially in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, to make flavored drinks. Infused simple syrups can be used to create desserts, or add sweetness and depth of flavor to cocktails.

Feedstock for fermentation

Glucose syrups rating over 90 DE ( dextrose equivalent) are used in

industrial fermentation Industrial fermentation is the intentional use of fermentation in manufacturing processes. In addition to the mass production of fermented foods and drinks, industrial fermentation has widespread applications in chemical industry. Commodity ch ...

Production

Syrups can be made by dissolving sugar in water or by reducing naturally sweet juices such as cane juice,

sorghum ''Sorghum bicolor'', commonly called sorghum () and also known as great millet, broomcorn, guinea corn, durra, imphee, jowar, or milo, is a species in the Poaceae, grass genus ''Sorghum (genus), Sorghum'' cultivated for its grain. The grain i ...

juice, or maple sap.

is made from

corn starch Cornflour, cornstarch, maize starch, or corn starch (American English) is the starch derived from corn (maize) grain. The starch is obtained from the endosperm of the seed, kernel. Corn starch is a common food ingredient, often used to thick ...

using an enzymatic process that converts it to sugars. A must weight-type refractometer is used to determine the sugar content in the solution.

References

External links

* * {{Authority control Drink mixers Demulcents Dosage forms Polymers Condiments