Golden syrup, also known as light treacle, is a thick, amber-colored form of inverted sugar syrup made by the process of refining sugar cane or sugar beet juice into sugar. It has a deep caramelized, buttery flavor and has been a kitchen staple in Great Britain for over a century. Golden syrup is used in a variety of baking recipes and desserts, and it can be used as a substitute for any liquid sweetener. It is also popular in Australia and New Zealand.
Golden syrup is made by inverting half the refiners return syrup to fructose and glucose and blending it back again. This ensures the product remains liquid and will never re-crystallize. Most golden syrups are produced by a specialist manufacturer today. However, golden syrup can also be made at home by stirring water and sugar over heat until boiling, with citric acid added to enhance inversion of sucrose. The mixture is slowly boiled without stirring until it is thick and amber-colored. At this point, much of the sucrose will have inverted to fructose and glucose, and caramelization will have created other chemicals in addition to darkening the color.
Golden syrup is a Newtonian fluid, with a density of approximately 1430 kg·m−3 at room temperature, and a viscosity of 210 Pa·s at 12 °C. It is useful in experimental fluid dynamics, being cheap, transparent, and non-toxic.
Some ways to use golden syrup include:
- Cookies/Biscuits (ANZAC Biscuits from Australia/New Zealand are a famous and delicious example)
- Fudge
- Candies
- Chocolates
- Ice Cream & Sorbets
- Flapjacks
- Brandy Snaps
- Gingerbread
- Treacle Tart
- Treacle Pudding
- Cakes (English Parkin is a classic example)
- Butter Tarts
- Drizzled over pancakes, waffles, oatmeal, and porridge
- Drizzled over fruit salads or yogurt
Golden syrup is not commonly used in the US, but it can be found in the international section of some grocery stores. If it is not available, it can be made at home using just three ingredients: sugar, water, and lemon juice.
