Jaggery Syrup is a homemade ready to use sweetener which you can add directly to your food item when needed. In south india jaggery syrup is a very common ingredient in every household  used in the preparation of day to day recipe.

What is jaggery

Jaggery is an unrefined and non distrilled sugar widely made in Asian and African countries. It  is popularly known as gur and mostly found in solid blocks or in powdered form. Solid form is usually called Jaggery or gur and the powdered form is called shakkar.

Jaggery is  found in light to darker shade. Ideally the dark colour jaggery is best because the light colour indicate more chemical treatment. It tastes like molasses or brown sugar. In North India people mainly consume it in its solid and powdered form while in south India, people prepare a syrup of it and then use.

Recipes made with jaggery you would like to try

Amla Murabaa with Jaggery

Shakarkandi Kheer with Jaggery

Til Dry fruit Chikki with Jaggery

Sweet Poori with Jaggery

Methi Coconut Ladoo with Jaggery

Although it is healthier than white sugar in the means of having vitamins, minerals and only 70% sucrose content when compared to white sugar which is just empty calories with 99.7% sucrose. But, still it is a type of sugar and eating in moderation is recommended. Too much consumption of jaggery creates a negative effect on your health and cause caries in your teeth.

Want to read more about jaggery click here

Process of making jaggery syrup at home

After a period of time, jaggery changes it colour or becomes soft or hard and no more suitable for eating as solid. Then making jaggery syrup is a good way to store or preserve jaggery for a longer time.

The making of jaggery syrup at home is very simple and it requires only 15 minutes of your time. As jaggery is found in solid big blocks, we need to crush or grate it first to make it easier to melt. Melt it on a low flame with water. Once it melted, better to strain it to remove any impurities it contains.

Then we need to cook further till it becomes a thick syrup. Cools it completely before storing. Choose a clean and sterilized jar or glass bottle to increase its shelf life. Keep it in the refrigerator if you want it store for a long time.

The colour of jaggery syrup is depends on the colour of jaggery. Prefer to use dark coloured jaggery as it is less refined then light coloured jaggery.

We can use it in cooking, baking, to sweeten juices and drinks or as a flavouring agent. Jaggery is also called medicinal sugar and preferred over white sugar to get more health benefits. It is a healthy option to add in the little babies food to sweeten it. Also can be added directly into kheer, pudding, tea or coffee without any fear of curdling.

Ingredients required for making jaggery syrup at home

• Plain Water
• Jaggery (grated or broken into small pieces)

Health benefits of consuming jaggery

• It improves digestion and boost our immunity.
• Great food item to detox our liver.
• Treat lungs and bronchial infections.
• Helps in relieving constipation issues.
• Rich in various essential micronutrients that keeps you energetic.
• Reduces stress level.
• Also helps in treating premenstrual syndromes symptoms.
• contains antioxidant and anticarcinogenic properties that protects you from cancer like diseases.

FAQs

Why jaggery is considered to be heathier than white sugar?

Although both are made from sugarcane and provides same amount of calories but they differ in their nutritional profile. Wile white or refined sugar are just pure empty calories on the other hand jaggery contains micronutrients that hepls in boosting your immunity and imrpoving digestive system.

What is the shelf life of this jaggery syrup?

First, it depends on the quantity of water used to make syrup and for how long you concentrate it on the flame. Second, where you have stored it – in refrigerator or at room temperature. It stay good for 1-2 months at room temperature and 4-5 months when stored in an airtight container and keep in the refrigerator.  It also crystallized after getting cold.

Where you can use jaggery syrup?

Add as a sweetener in your oats, kheer, granola, overnight oats, porriage, drinks etc. It is a healthy option to add into the food of little babies.

Step by step preparation of homemade jaggery syrup

1.Break into small pieces or grate solid jaggery.

2.Now take a pan, put it on a low flame. Add  water in it and grated or broken jaggery pieces and wait till it melts. Stir occasionally.

3.Take a bowl and put a sieve on it and place a muslin cloth over it. Strain the melted jaggery mixture to remove the dirt if present.

4.Now, put the strained jaggery syrup again on the heat and cook it till it forms a one thread consistency syrup. This step will take only 2-3 minutes so keep an eye on the pan and stir occasionally and check the thread consistency.

5. At that stage, Switch off the flame and let it cool down for 5-10 minutes .

6.Transfer into a clean and dry jar and let it cool completely. Cover with lid and store at room temperature.

7. It will stay good for about 5-7 days at room temperature and  2-3 months if kept in the refrigerator.

Serving suggestions

Use jaggery syrup as a ready to use healthy sweetener for your oats, oatmeal, porridge, overnight oats, sweet chilla, appam, kheer, payasam etc.

Tips ansd tricks

• Melt jaggery or gur at low flame, high flame can burn it and spoil its taste and texture.
• Strain water and jaggery mixture before concentrating to get rid of impurities if any.
• Store in a clean dry bottle and place it in the refrigerator for a longer shelf life.

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