Tips & Ingredients

Brown Sugar

Have you ever tried to bake with brown sugar in Germany? If so, you may have noticed that the "Brauner Zucker" available in German grocery stores is much lighter than the brown sugar you're used to. This is what's called raw or whole cane sugar in the English-speaking world. Instead of mixing molasses into refined sugar, like typical American brown sugar, the sugar cane is less refined, leaving more of the original molasses behind in the sugar crystals themselves. As a result, it can be drier and have a more complex flavor profile than the mixed kind.

Buying

Any supermarket will have a few types of brown sugar. I find the easiest way to pick the right one is by color. Just look at the color of the sugar and try to find one that best matches the light/dark brown sugar you would want to use.

Names:

  • Rohrohrzucker
  • Rohrzucker
  • brauner Zucker

American brown sugar can also be bought online or in specialty stores, but it can be expensive.

Substituting

For dark brown sugar, add 1 Tbsp of molasses for every cup of white sugar. For light brown sugar, use 1 1/2 tsp of molasses. Molasses (Melasse, Rohrzucker-Melasse) can often be found in you local Bio-Markt, or online. Much more common in Germany is sugar beet molasses (Zuckerrübensirup), though it tastes quite different, and might not be suitable as as a substitute.

The easiest way: a darker whole cane sugar is usually a great substitute, even if it doesn't have quite as much molasses.