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Eat this Word: Jaggery

jbfauthor

jbfauthor

July 27, 2010

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Jaggery WHAT? Indian turbinado. A dark, unrefined sugar, jaggery is used in Southeast Asia and India, regions where-we're told-sugar is considered good for you! Jaggery, which accounts for 50 percent of the sugar eaten in India, is made from sugar cane and is processed by a method not unlike that used to make maple syrup. The sweet sap from the sugarcane is boiled down while several people help stir the steadily thickening syrup. The finished product has a distinctive taste and can have a consistency as soft as honey-butter or as solid as fudge. India's epic narrative Mahabharata describes how jaggery (and gur, a sugar made from date palms) was used in sophisticated sweets at the time of Lord Krishna's appearance 5,000 years ago. WHERE? Best of D.C. WHEN? August 20, 2010 HOW? Tawa Baingan Olive Oil, Garlic, and Black Pepper–Marinated Italian Eggplant with Spiced Potatoes, and Jaggery, Coconut, and Peanut Sauce