If you’re baking and a recipe calls for brown sugar, you might be wondering whether coconut sugar is a reasonable substitute, or if your treats will fail from using the wrong kind of sugar. It’s important to check before you try whipping up a batch of your favorite dessert.
Can you use coconut sugar instead of brown sugar? Yes, coconut sugar will work instead of brown sugar, but it’s drier than brown sugar, which can result in a different texture. It doesn’t trap moisture the way that brown sugar does, so you may find your baked goods turn out a little denser and crumblier than they would with brown sugar. Coconut sugar is also not as sweet.
Can You Use Coconut Sugar Instead of Brown Sugar?
Coconut sugar will work as a substitute for brown sugar in most circumstances, and you can simply swap it on a 1:1 ratio when you are baking. However, if you find that your recipe turns out a little drier or crumblier than usual, you might want to try including a bit more fat to make up for this.
Coconut sugar is one of the common substitutes for brown sugar and it will usually work very well. Because it can be used at the same ratio as brown sugar, it’s one of the easiest swaps you can make, because you don’t need to recalculate the quantities. You can treat it in exactly the same way.
Often, you will not notice a difference between using coconut sugar and using brown sugar. It’s usually worth trying a recipe first to see if you can taste any difference before you start making alterations to account for the change in sugar.
If you are just learning to use coconut sugar, try recipes that have been designed to incorporate it, rather than swapping it into a different recipe straight away.
How Can You Make Coconut Sugar Moister?
If you find that a recipe does turn out too dry with coconut sugar instead of brown sugar, the best option is often adding a bit more of whatever fat you are using for the recipe. For example, you might choose to include more butter, lard, or oil.
This will help to make the recipe moister overall, and should counteract the problem with the brown sugar. Another option involves heating the coconut sugar before adding it to the recipe, as melting it will sometimes increase the moistness of the baked good afterward.
Otherwise, try using coconut sugar in recipes that are already pleasantly moist, or including some brown sugar alongside the coconut sugar to mitigate the effect. Because brown sugar so readily traps moisture, it should help to keep the dessert’s texture the same, even if you use some coconut sugar too.
Is Coconut Sugar as Sweet as Brown Sugar?
Coconut sugar unfortunately is not as sweet as brown sugar, and you may find that it doesn’t make the desserts as tasty as you expected. If you are used to the flavor of the recipe with brown sugar, you may find that the coconut sugar version is not as enjoyable, depending on how sweet you like your baked goods.
Some people counteract this by adding more coconut sugar than they would brown sugar, but this can cause problems with the texture, because the ratio of dry ingredients will have been increased. You should therefore be cautious about doing this, unless you also increase one of the wet ingredients to counter the effect.
In general, it’s best to accept that coconut sugar isn’t as sweet as brown sugar, and slowly adapt your tastes to it if you can. You can often adjust by swapping part of the brown sugar for coconut sugar, and increasing this ratio over time, until you are used to the coconut sugar.
Is Coconut Sugar Healthy?
A lot of people turn to coconut sugar in an attempt to be healthier, because it is less processed than brown sugar and certainly less processed than white sugar. It contains trace amounts of vitamins and minerals. However, it is still a sugar and not noticeably healthier than brown or white sugar.
Because coconut sugar has not been processed as much as the traditionally used sugars, it tends to have a little more goodness in it. There are some antioxidants, which could be beneficial when consumed. Overall, though, coconut sugar isn’t good for you and it shouldn’t be seen as a healthy option.
It may be slightly better than brown sugar, but it isn’t great, and you shouldn’t increase the quantity of sugar that you eat just because you are opting for coconut sugar instead of brown or white sugar.
What Does Coconut Sugar Taste Like?
Coconut sugar tastes similar to brown sugar, even though it isn’t as sweet. It has a somewhat molasses-like flavor, but it’s a little more distinctive, and you may begin to recognize its caramel taste if you start regularly using it in cooking.
Coconut sugar is made from the nectar of palm trees. Many people think that it comes from coconuts themselves, or from coconut milk, but this isn’t the case. Instead, the flower bud is cut into so that the nectar and sap can be accessed.
The sap is then mixed with water and boiled into a syrup, which can be dried and crystallized. Once it has hardened and formed into crystals, it can be broken up into the brown granules that we recognize as coconut sugar.
As you can see, little processing is needed, which is one of the reasons that coconut sugar regularly gets touted as a healthy alternative to brown sugar. Overall, however, it is not much healthier than standard sugar. Be wary of claims that it is good for you. In small quantities, it should be fine, but like all sugars, it can cause health problems.
Final Thoughts
Using coconut sugar instead of brown sugar will work well in many situations, but be aware that some baked goods may end up being dry, and the flavor will not be as sweet. On the whole, you can simply swap coconut sugar on a 1:1 ratio, but try a small batch to test its effectiveness.
