What Is Pearl sugar and How Can I Use It?
Here's everything worth knowing about pearl sugar and how to pick it, what it is, how to store it, and what to use instead, plus 1 recipe to cook tonight.
Key Points
- Hard, opaque white sugar nibs engineered to resist melting in the oven.
- Gives the crunch in Belgian and Liege waffles, Scandinavian buns, and as a topping.
- Stays as distinct white crunchy pockets after baking; ordinary sugar just melts in.
What is pearl sugar?
Pearl sugar is sugar pressed into hard, opaque white nibs that are made to resist heat. Unlike granulated, it does not melt or dissolve in the oven, so it survives baking as distinct crunchy white pockets.
That heat resistance is the whole reason to use it. It is the signature crunch and burst of sweetness folded into Belgian and Liege waffle dough, scattered over Scandinavian buns, and pressed onto choux buns and cookies like Finnish Fingers just before baking.
Press it onto the surface or fold it in, then bake as usual; the nibs stay white and crisp. There is no real substitute that behaves the same way, since ordinary sugar simply melts in.
For everything else about sugar, see sugar.
Quick facts
- In Chinese
- 珍珠糖
- British (UK) term
- Pearl sugar
- en français
- sucre perlé
- en español
- azúcar perla
Recipes using pearl sugar
There are 1 recipe that contain this ingredient.
Finnish Fingers
Finnish fingers (sokerikakkusormet) are short, buttery shortbread sticks brushed with egg white and rolled in pearl sugar for a crunchy, sparkling exterior. Classic Scandinavian Christmas cookie.
