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Jaggery - Gur
Names of jaggery
Jaggery is the traditional unrefined
sugar used in
India. Though "jaggery" is used for the
products of both
sugarcane and the
date palm tree, technically, the word
refers solely to sugarcane sugar. The sugar made from the sap of the date
palm is both more prized and less available outside of the districts where
it is made. Hence, outside of these areas, sugarcane jaggery is sometimes
called "gur" to increase its market value. The
sago palm and
coconut palm are also now tapped for
producing jaggery in southern India. In
Mexico and
South America, similar sugarcane products
are known as "panela"
or "piloncillo".
All types of the sugar come in blocks of pastes of
solidified concentrated
sugar
syrup heated to 200°C. Traditionally, the
syrup is made by boiling raw sugarcane juice or palm
sap in a large shallow round-bottom vessel
as shown here.
Jaggery is considered by some to be a particularly
wholesome sugar and, unlike refined sugar, it retains more
mineral salts. Moreover, the process does
not involve chemical agents. Indian
Ayurvedic medicine considers jaggery to be
beneficial in treating
throat and
lung infections; Sahu and Saxena[1]
found that in rats jaggery can prevent lung damage from particulate matter
such as
coal and
silica dust.
Jaggery is used as an ingredient in both sweet and
savory dishes across India and
Sri Lanka. For example, a pinch of jaggery
is sometimes added to
sambar,
rasam and other gravies which are staples
in southern India. It is also a delicacy in its own right. The Indian
chef and cookbook author
Madhur Jaffrey writes about a "jaggery
board", like a
cheese board, as a
dessert course in a
Bengali dinner, with varieties of palm and
sugar cane jaggeries offered, differing in taste, color, and solidity.
Jaggery is also molded into novelty shapes as a type of
candy. Other uses include jaggery
toffees and jaggery cake made with
pumpkin preserve,
cashew nuts and
spices. Jaggery may also be used in the
creation of alcoholic beverages.
Jaggery is also considered auspicious in many parts
of India, and is eaten raw before commencement of good work or any important
new venture.
Muzaffarnagar District in Uttar Pradesh has the largest
jaggery market in India, followed by Anakapalli of Visakhapatnam District in
Andhra Pradesh. These are the biggest and second biggest in the entire
world.
In
Myanmar, jaggery, known as htanyet, is
harvested from
toddy palm syrup. In central Myanmar and
around
Bagan (Pagan), toddy syrup is collected
solely for the purpose of making jaggery. The translucent white syrup is
boiled until it becomes golden brown, and then made into bite-sized pieces.
Htanyet, which means "toddy lick", is considered a sweet, and is eaten by
children and adults alike, usually in the afternoon along with a pot of
green tea. It has been referred to locally as Burmese chocolate. Toddy palm
jaggery is also sometimes mixed with
coconut
shreddings,
plum puree or
sesame, depending on the area. This type of
jaggery is also used in
Burmese cooking, usually to add color and
enrich the food.
It is a rich source of iron due to the process
involved, using iron utensils.
Besides its uses as a food, jaggery may also be
used to season the inside of
tandoor ovens.
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