The process of how to caramelize sugar is quite a simple one and is the start of many dessert sauces and candies. The technique may seem daunting at first, but once you get the hang of it it will open the door to many new recipes to master!
The process of caramelizing sugar feels like pure magic. Snowy white sugar granules are heated either solo or mixed with water and those crystals quickly become a liquid that starts to completely change in color and flavor. Caramelized sugar resembles nothing of its original state and the final result opens the doors to endless uses.
Caramelized sugar is used in everything from caramel sauces, candies, topping flan, ice creams, frostings, and so many more things! It’s even used for savory preparations such as the sweet and sour gastrique sauce.
The process for how to caramelize sugar can seem daunting, but I promise you it really isn’t. There is all kind of chemistry and science happening during the process, but I’m going to break it down for you and keep it really simple so you can approach this process with confidence!
The white granulated sugar most common in baking is a molecule known as sucrose. Sucrose is contained in all plants and is found in very high quantities in sugar cane and sugar beets. Therefore, these are the plants where most of our granulated sugar is derived from.
Sucrose is actually made up of two different kinds of simple sugars, fructose and glucose, that are bonded together. This bond is very stable and is what forms the sugar crystals.
The Stages of Sugar Syrup
When sugar is combined with water and heat is applied a solution known as a simple syrup is formed. As the temperature of the sugar rises, more water evaporates off resulting in a higher concentration of sugar in the solution. The higher the concentration of sugar, the more brittle the cooled syrup is. This is important knowledge in candy making, as certain sugar concentrations are needed for various final products.
Below is a chart mapping out the various stages sugar syrup goes through before it reaches caramelization.
| SUGAR SYRUP STAGES | TEMPERATURE FAHRENHEIT | TEMPERATURE CELSIUS | USES |
| The Thread Stage | 215-230°F | 102-113°C | Syrups, Preserves |
| The Soft Ball Stage | 240°F | 115°C | Fondant, Fudge |
| The Firm Ball Stage | 245°F | 118°C | Caramel Candies |
| The Hard Ball Stage | 250-260°F | 122-127°C | Marshmallows, Nougat |
| The Soft Crack Stage | 270-290°F | 132-143°C | Taffy |
| The Hard Crack | 300-310°F | 149-154°C | Butterscotch, Brittle |
When high heat is applied to sugar it begins to discompose and become a liquid. When sugar is heated even further it begins to turn darker in color and tastes nuttier in flavor. This process is called caramelization and is the basic process used to start many candy recipes and dessert sauces.
There are two basic methods used for caramelizing sugar: The Dry Method and The Wet Method. If done properly, both methods achieve the same end result, but both have their advantages and disadvantages. It really is a matter of preference.
The wet method is what I recommend for those who are brand new to the caramel making process. The benefit of the wet method is that it slows down the caramelization process and makes it more difficult to burn the sugar. The disadvantage of the wet method is that you are more at risk of re-crystallizing the sugar and you must be much more careful to not agitate the mixture too much.
The process of making wet caramelized sugar is very simple. Sugar is combined with water and heated. The mixture should be stirred together until the sugar is completely saturated and beginning to dissolve. Once the sugar/water mixture comes to a boil it is then left alone to cook, without stirring it. The mixture will go through all of the sugar syrup stages listed above and then will move further into caramelization. As the water continues to evaporate off and the heat of the sugar rises, the sugar begins to caramelize.
1. Baby it’s COLD outside; when the outside weather is cooler, our body temp also tends to run a bit cooler, especially at the surface of the skin. When your skin is cool, you can’t rely on a lot of warming to happen at the surface of the skin so you’ll want to start the sugar paste off a bit softer to start and expect that it will cool and maybe even harden through the process of use.
3. HUMIDITY facts; No one’s hair ever liked humidity; but the tension between hair and humidity has never been more pronounced than when sugar tries to get in between. Enter Detox Dust; humidity, especially on the surface of the skin, is the enemy of sugar, so the more humidity is in the air the more Detox Dust powder you will need; probably every single time you apply the sugar to your skin you’ll have to dust first. On the other hand dryer climates are ideal for sugaring with minimal powder intervention. Unless of course you’ve been in the dry climate for so long that your skin is starting to match the skin of the reptiles of the desert environment.
So you can see that Goldilocks had the right idea; not too hot, not too cold but just right. These tips are designed to optimize your use of the sugar wax so that each lump of goop that you scoop can be stretched multiple times and cover a larger area of skin.
Microwave for 10 seconds – it’s critical that you only do this once, and it’s also critical that there is absolutely nothing else in the microwave so that the heat distributes evenly. Overheating the sugar can lead to burns. Let’s just be clear; sugar wax is not like candle wax, which cools immediately as it leaves the heat source. On the contrary sugar wax; holds extreme amounts of heat for extended periods so don’t microwave it twice.
2. It’s gettin’ HOT in here; during warmer/hotter months your skin is usually warmer at the surface to match it’s environment, which means that every time you stretch the sugar wax on your skin; your skin will warm it up a bit. So in the hotter months it’s best to start with the sugar a tiny bit tougher and let it loosen up in the process. This means that the very first application might require a bit of muscle to stretch it over the skin, but after a tug or two it’ll be soft and manageable.