In ancient times, people used grains to make wine and sugar. The sugar produced in the early days was mainly maltose, which is a kind of sugar made from rice (starch) and malt through saccharification and boiling. It is viscous and is commonly known as maltose.

Caramel has been around since the Western Zhou Dynasty and is considered to be the earliest sugar produced in the world. Since its creation in the Western Zhou Dynasty, it has been widely spread among the people and widely eaten. "Qi Min Yao Shu" written by Jia Sixie of the Northern Wei Dynasty has the most detailed description. The method, steps and key points of making caramel are described in the book, which has been used by future generations for a long time.

my country has a long history of using sugarcane to make sugar. Sugarcane is produced in the south. From the Warring States Period to the end of the Han Dynasty, sugarcane was grown and its juice was drunk. In the Han Dynasty, people could already use sugar paste boiled from sugarcane pulp to shape various animals. Although the product was still inferior, it was a big improvement compared to the consumption of sugarcane pulp during the Warring States Period.

From the Eastern Han Dynasty to the early Tang Dynasty, the quality of our country's sucrose was not good. Therefore, Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty sent people to the Indian country of Magadha to learn sugar making technology and introduce new sugar making methods. From then on, our country's sucrose production Just entered a new stage.

According to "Tang Huiyao", sugar production began in the Tang Dynasty. There are detailed records of hand-made sugar in "Tiangong Kaiwu" by Song Yingxing of the Ming Dynasty. This method of hand-made sugar was still used until the founding of New China. In the late Qing Dynasty, sugar beet production began in Northeast my country.

Extended information

Classification of common sugars

According to the degree of refining, source, form and color of sugar, it can be roughly divided into the following categories:

1. Refined white sugar: referred to as sugar, it is granular crystal. According to the size of the crystal, there are three types: coarse sand, medium sand and fine sand. It is characterized by high purity, low moisture and few impurities. The domestic sugar content is higher than 99.45 and the moisture is lower than 0.12. According to the standards, it is divided into three grades: superior grade, first grade and second grade, all of which are suitable for the production of bread and pastry.

2. Coarse sugar: It is unrefined raw sugar with low purity, many impurities, high water content and light yellow color, such as domestic No. 2 sugar and imported Brazilian sugar and Cuban sugar.

3. Soft white sugar: The crystals are small and uniform, white in color, soft in texture, less pure than white sugar, with a sugar content of about 98 and a moisture content of less than 2. It is used in high-end foods due to its high cost.

4. Brown sugar: granular crystals, brown in color, with high impurities, but can be used for special purposes.

5. Brown sugar (tablet sugar, brown sugar): Generally produced by local pressing, it has the most impurities and the lowest purity. However, it has its own special flavor and quick coloring in baking, and it also has certain applications.

6. Brown sugar powder: The purity is higher than brown sugar, and it is easy to weigh and can be used in larger quantities than brown sugar.

7. Rock sugar and born sugar: inconvenient to weigh, high cost, rarely used, and limited to high-end foods.

8. Glucose powder and glucose syrup: Glucose syrup is obtained from starch through enzymatic catalysis or hydrolysis in the presence of acid, and then spray-dried to obtain powdered glucose, which generally contains water 8.

9. Malt cubes and maltose syrup: obtained from barley and wheat through the action of maltase on water. The finished products produced in my country are generally called maltose.

10. Invert syrup: produced by heating sucrose and water in the presence of hydrochloric acid. It is characterized by low viscosity and good transparency. It is a necessary raw material for making Cantonese-style mooncakes.

11. Fructose syrup (isomeric syrup): Convert part of the glucose in the inverted syrup into fructose under the action of glucose enzyme. The isomerization conversion rate of industrially produced fructose syrup is 42, and the sweetness at this time is equal to that of sucrose. If the conversion rate is further increased, higher sweetness can be obtained.

12. Honey: The secretion of plant nectaries has a high sweetness, 60 to 80, which is a simple sugar that is easily absorbed by the human body and has a special flavor.

13. Molasses: When making sugar in a sugar factory, the mother liquor left after the syrup is concentrated has the most impurities. But it has a special aroma and is often used in the production of whole wheat bread.

14. Caramel is a kind of confectionery. Caramel is obtained by boiling white sugar at a temperature close to or exceeding 115°C until it turns light yellow, almost brown, with a burnt aroma. It is generally used when making pudding. Eating too much is harmful.

Baidu Encyclopedia--Sugar