Candy is prepared
from sugar syrup. The syrup is heated for a long period so that it starts to
solidify. Candies come in variety of textures, from soft and gummy to hard and
brittle. The type produced depends on the temperatures and cooling period of
syrup during its preparation.
In Old days steam
power was used in factories. Candy making and consumption increased during 19th
century. In early days of its development preparation was done mostly by hand.
It used to be prepared at home or in small, local shops. Increased machine involvement
caused prices to come down and consumption increased.In the late 19th century
early 20th century, candy was considered sweet and friendly, so preparing it at
home, giving to friends and relatives was the trend. But over time its
manufacturing developed in to a big industry. There had been a time when it
even got the status of alternate meal. At that time there was very little
awareness about nutrition. It was only in late 20th century that people were
made aware, that these give empty calories and their
popularity came down.
Making candy can be
hazardous at times, due to the high temperature of sugar. The temperature often
exceeds 150 degrees Celsius. Even small splashes can cause burns.
They are basically
2 types of candies. Hard Candy and Soft Candy.
1. Hard candy
Hard candy, is a
candy prepared from syrups heated to a temperature of 160 °C. After heating the
syrup to this temperature, it is poured in moulds and then cooled till room
temperature we get hard candy. To add color, food grade color is used.
Soft candy is
subdivided in to two categories:
I. Cotton candy
Cotton candy is
made by spinning sugar. The Machines used to make cotton candy has a spinning
head covering a small bowl. Granulated sugar is poured in the bowl while it
spins. Heaters melt the sugar, and this melted sugar is squeezed out through
tiny holes by centrifugal force, and the molten sugar solidifies in the form of
strands, then a stick, cone, or hands are used to collect the strands.
II. Marshmallows
The use of
marshmallow to make a sweet dates back to ancient Egypt. It is prepared using
egg whites, corn syrup and sugar. Now a days, marshmallows are prepared by
process of extrusion. Extrusion is the process in which we force semi solid
paste of sugar through small orifice to give it cylindrical shape.
0 comments :
Post a Comment