How to: Make your own invert (candi) sugar cheap (with pics)

[PseudoChef]

Start from corn syrup and add some yeast nutrient (diammonium phosphate). I have no idea what the DAP does, but this is how Mosher describes it, and in a tasting I did with my club it was the hands-down winner. Costs a little more than using cane sugar, but still more than half the cost of buying it from the homebrew store.

[Ó Flannagáin]

I suspect the DAP does the same thing as citrus or tartar. Alton said there needs to be something during the cooking process that keeps the crystals from recombining once they start breaking down. SO you could probably use lemon juice with the corn syrup as well.

[WOP31]

After brushing up on my candy making skills on the interwebz (i't been a long time since culinary arts school), the only difference in "rock candi" and syrup is the temp you allow it to reach during the boiling.

To keep it as a syrup don't let it get above 275 during the boiling of it. And keep on hand some cool water to add to the boil to help maintain your temp. Then when you are done with the boil add some water to bring back to the desired consistancy.

From a couple of different sources i read, most of the candi syrups that are imported use straight sugar (beet or cane) and no acids. Given enough time and heat the sugar will invert itself. Great for making dark syrup, but not so if you are making a light syrup.

Think I am going to try and make some syrup for a Belgian Dark Strong I want to make.

[PseudoChef]

Originally Posted by Ó Flannagáin

I suspect the DAP does the same thing as citrus or tartar. Alton said there needs to be something during the cooking process that keeps the crystals from recombining once they start breaking down. SO you could probably use lemon juice with the corn syrup as well.

I'm not so sure. He talks about making hard candi sugar as well where he states to use the acid. I don't know why he would use DAP one instance and acid in the other if you could just use the more common acid both times.

EDIT:

\m/\m/

[flyangler18]

Here's some hard candi I made this morning; I still prefer using corn syrup for flavor and ease of handling.

[Ó Flannagáin]

Looks good! Guess I need to try the corn syrup method. Basically the same as table sugar method?

[Cliff]

Cream of tartar is potassium bitartrate.
It's a by-product of the wine making.
A substance called argol or tartar forms during the fermentation. It's recovered from the sides of the wood casks. That's cream of tartar.

In candy making the acidity serves as an interfering agent facilitating the inversion of sucrose into fructose and glucose while interfering with crystallization.

In candy making this is good because it prevents crystallization giving the candy maker a more manageable product. You can stop the process while the sugar is yet crystal clear or keep cooking to get some caramel color and flavor.

In beer making it gives you more readily ferment-able sugars.
Conceivably, you could just use corn sugar but you'd pay more for it while not getting the amber color one gets by taking the candy into the caramel-ish coloration.


The lemon juice is another acid in the interfering process.
Some candy makers also use vinegar.

[Ó Flannagáin]

Hey, tyhanks for the write up, cliff!!