How many times it has happened with you, that you are craving for something sweet and want to pull out that tempting sweet from the beautiful jar but have stopped yourself from doing so just to control your sugar consumption? If this sounds familiar to you, then my friend I have a solution as I too have sailed through the same boat. And that put me on a journey to become a passionate evangelist for jaggery.

As, me and my family are sweet lovers, I always look for a healthier option to satisfy our sweet cravings. And for this, jaggery comes to our rescue. I have been giving it to my kid since we started solids for him. And, now he is going to be 5 but we never gave sugar to him. I also use other healthier options as sweetener but jaggery has been my all time favorite. 

So, I thought I should share some facts and details that would help you switch from the refined sugar that is also termed as white poison to a much healthier and beneficial substitute that is jaggery.

 What Is Jaggery?

Jaggery is popularly known as a traditional sweetener (Gur) which is prepared by boiling raw and concentrated sugarcane juice till it solidifies. It is made from unrefined sugar and hence, is a better sweetener to be consumed. It is also known as “panela” in South America and Mexico and “Gur” in India. In West Bengal, one popular jaggery is “Nolen Gur” which is very famous and is made of date palm sap and the other type is made of coconut sap. Similarly, in other states it is called with different names like “Bella” in Kannada, “Vellam” in Tamil and “Gul” in Marathi. The one made with sugarcane is the most widely used jaggery.

It not only acts as a sweetener for your food, but also has a lot of health benefits. Our elders in India used to eat it after food as it aids in digestion. It has a combination of protein, choline, vitamin B12 , B6, folate, calcium, iron, phosphorus, magnesium, selenium and  manganese. There are no traces of any kind of fat and therefore, is ideal for people who are worried about excessive fat intake in their diet. Though, it should be avoided by people having diabetes as the sugar content is similar to that of white sugar.  

Types of Jaggery

Jaggery can be found in three forms. It can be stored for a long time without refrigeration if kept in a dry place. It is also called as medicinal sugar and therefore is a very healthy substitute for sugar. The types of jaggery and their benefits are:

Coconut Jaggery

The jaggery is derived from the unfermented coconut sap. It does not contain sucrose and contains essential minerals like iron and magnesium. It is mostly used in various Goan cuisines and is part of the various Goan curry recipes. It is the darkest of all the types of jaggery and is also hard in texture. One way to check its purity is by dissolving a small piece in water. If the particles separates and settle down at the bottom, it means it is adulterated.

Various benefits of coconut jaggery are:

1. Helps in soothing flu-like symptoms- It helps in soothing symptoms like sore throat and cough and cold. It is a very effective home remedy for flu like symptoms.

2. Helps in cooling down stomach- It is a very effective remedy for cooling down stomach as it help the body to maintain a steady temperature and therefore used as a natural home remedy for cooling the stomach.

3. Helps in controlling blood pressure- The presence of iron, sodium and potassium helps in maintaining a healthy blood pressure.

Palm Jaggery

The jaggery is derived by sap extraction of palm trees and then boiling, filtering and churning in the traditional method. These are dark brown in color and just melts in your mouth. One should taste it before buying. It becomes salty in taste as it ages. But if it tastes bitter or is extra sweet or if crystals are found, it means that it has been adulterated. 

Various benefits of palm jaggery are:

1. Helps in improving digestion- It helps in boosting the digestive enzymes and facilitating the bowel movement. It is advisable to have a piece of jaggery in your mouth which will help to improve your digestion and will also take care of your sweet cravings.
2. Helps in boosting immunity- It helps in improving your immunity as it has zinc and potassium in abundance which helps in fighting against various diseases.
3. Helps in preventing anemia- It contains iron which helps in increasing the hemoglobin levels and hence taking care of anemia.

Sugarcane Jaggery  

The jaggery is derived by extracting the sugarcane juice and then boiling it, filtering it and churning it using traditional methods. It is the most common and popular type of jaggery with loads of health benefits. The purity of this type of jaggery can be checked by its color. It is mostly light to dark brown in color and usually a little hard to bite. It is believed that the darker the color of the jaggery, the better it is as light color jaggery means that it has gone through certain adulteration.

Various benefits of sugarcane jaggery are:

1. Helps in reducing weight – The presence of potassium helps in maintaining electrolyte balance and therefore, it is considered as a healthier option to be included in your diet.
2. Helps in preventing respiratory problems – It is believed that daily consumption of jaggery eliminates the chance of contracting any infections and therefore, prevents cough, asthma or other respiratory infections.
3. Helps in detoxification of liver- It is also considered as a cleanser which helps in flushing out all the harmful toxins and thereby reducing the workload of our liver.

Jaggery and Jaggery Powder

The process of making jaggery and jaggery powder is the same. The only difference being, that cane is boiled till it takes a form of a solid to make jaggery and transferred in a bowl so as to give it a shape. But, in case of jaggery powder, the process is stopped before a few minutes and then after taking it off the flame, it is continuously stirred so that it comes in the form of powder. It is not allowed to cool naturally, but the continuous stirring even after taking it off the flame makes it like a powder. It is allowed to then cool naturally so that it can be made available in the form of powder. Therefore, Jaggery is warm in nature while jaggery powder is cooler in nature. Jaggery powder is consumed during summers or by those whose body produces a lot of heat while for others it is advisable to have jaggery cubes. One can even have jaggery during winters. There is no difference in the benefits and nutritional values as such.

So, I hope now you understand why I use jaggery in my recipes and this information will be helpful for you in making the decision to migrate from sugar to jaggery and introduce this healthy and natural sweetener in your day to day life.

lokah samastah sukhino bhavantu..