Sugar Syrups

Question 1

What are the rules of making a sugar syrup?

Answer 1

1. Place the sugar into a pan with the water. Be aware that warm water can speed up the
   process a little.
2. Place the pan over a low heat and allow the sugar to dissolve gently. You can agitate the
   sugar to help it dissolve, try not to flick grains of sugar up the sides of the pan.
3. Do use water and a pastry brush to melt in any sugar crystals that are stuck up the sides of
   the pan.
4. The sugar needs to be fully dissolved before the heat is turned up……..once the sugar is
   dissolved turn up to a boil.
5. At no point from when the mixture is boiling do you want to stir!!
6. Once the mixture has been boiling for about 2 minutes, test the consistency
   o Dip a tea spoon into the syrup, dip your fingers in water very lightly.
   o Rub the syrup between your thumb and index finger
7. It should feel like Vaseline and slightly greasy
8. This is the stage of a stock sugar syrup.

Question 2

Why might your sugar syrup crystallise?

Answer 2

Dirty pan or equipment
* Wrong sugar used
* The sugar hadn’t fully dissolved before the water boiled
* You didn’t wash down the sides of the pan with a pastry brush (wet caramel only) so grains
of sugar are left to act as seeds.
* The syrup was stirred during the boiling process which encourages sugar crystals to form
together

• Remember sugar crystals like to be in a solid, bonded state so they will do their best to re-
  form as a solid once melted. Try not to help them by following the rules of making caramels.

Question 3

What is the basic ratio of a stock syrup?

Answer 3

A basic stock syrup would have a ratio of 1 part
sugar to 2 parts water.

Question 4

What is wet caramel?

Answer 4

A wet caramel involves making a sugar syrup and
allowing the syrup to boil for longer reducing the water off and cook through to a caramel.

Question 5

What is a dry caramel

Answer 5

A dry caramel, as its name suggests involves no water, simply melting the sugar and allowing it to
cook through to a caramel.

Question 6

What can go wrong in caramel?

Answer 6

If you go too dark with the colour it will be too bitter and the caramel will need to be
remade and if its too light it will be too sweet. Crystallisation can also happen