Treacle () is any uncrystallised

syrup In cooking, syrup (less commonly sirup; from ; , beverage, wine and ) is a condiment that is a thick, viscous liquid consisting primarily of a Solution (chemistry), solution of sugar in water, containing a large amount of dissolved sugars but ...

made during the refining 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 ...

.Oxford Dictionary The most common forms of treacle are golden syrup, a pale variety, and black treacle, a darker variety similar to molasses. Black treacle has a distinctively strong, slightly bitter flavour, and a richer colour than golden syrup. Golden syrup treacle is a common sweetener and condiment in

British cuisine British cuisine consists of the cooking traditions and practices associated with the United Kingdom, including the regional cuisines of English cuisine, England, Scottish cuisine, Scotland, Welsh cuisine, Wales, and Northern Irish cuisine, Nort ...

, found in such dishes as treacle tart and treacle sponge pudding.

Etymology

Historically, the

Middle English Middle English (abbreviated to ME) is a form of the English language that was spoken after the Norman Conquest of 1066, until the late 15th century. The English language underwent distinct variations and developments following the Old English pe ...

term was used by herbalists and apothecaries to describe a medicine (also called '' theriac'' or ''theriaca''), composed of many ingredients, that was used as an antidote for poisons, snakebites, and various other ailments. ''Triacle'' comes from the

Old French Old French (, , ; ) was the language spoken in most of the northern half of France approximately between the late 8th [2-4; we might wonder whether there's a point at which it's appropriate to talk of the beginnings of French, that is, when it wa ...

, in turn from (unattested and reconstructed) Vulgar Latin , which comes from Latin , the latinization (literature), latinisation of the Ancient Greek language, Greek (), the feminine of (), 'concerning venomous beasts', which comes from (), 'wild animal, beast'.

Production

Treacle is made from the syrup that remains after sugar is refined. Raw sugars are first treated in a process called affination. When dissolved, the resulting liquor contains the minimum of dissolved non-sugars to be removed by treatment with activated carbon or bone char. The dark-coloured washings are treated separately, without carbon or bone char. They are boiled to grain (i.e. until sugar crystals precipitate out) in a vacuum pan, forming a low-grade (boiled mass) which is centrifuged, yielding a brown sugar and a liquid by-product—''treacle''. Black treacle naturally contains relatively high levels of sulphite (>100 ppm, expressed in sulphur dioxide equivalent). These levels are deemed safe for the majority of the population. However, some allergic and respiratory reactions have been reported particularly amongst asthmatics. As such, that the United States Food and Drug Administration requires that levels over 10ppm, i.e. >10 mg/kg, be declared on the ingredients label.Bindu Nair and Amy R. Elmore, Final Report on the Safety Assessment of Sodium Sulfite, Potassium Sulfite, Ammonium Sulfite, Sodium Bisulfite, Ammonium Bisulfite, Sodium Metabisulfite and Potassium Metabisulfite, ''International Journal of Toxicology'' 22(Suppl. 2):63–88, 2003, page 67

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