Ingredients, Equipment and Materials
Ingredients Used In the Elaboration of Candies
In general lines, in order to elaborate candy you will need the following ingredients:
- Interference agents
- Sugar
- Water
- Cornstarch
- Proteins
- Acidulates
Interference Agents
The ingredients that compose a sweet syrup interfere in the quantity of sugar that crystallizes and in the size of the crystals. The most common is inverted syrup, but there is also fructose, glucose, and hydrolyzed corn glucose syrup.
In chewy candies, the inverted sugar avoids it from becoming granulated which is what the saccharose causes, which allows the fabrication of semi solid sweets.
In the case of marshmallows it allows the molding of it, since it controls crystallization, hardening and fermentation of the jello. In general inverted sugar allows the formation of small crystals, which are essential for a soft texture.
Another property of inverted sugar is that it has a 25% of water, which helps to maintain the humidity and avoids gummy candies from drying and becoming breakable.
Sugar
Sugar is the basic component of most sweets. It adds sweetness and allows a unique texture. For the producers of candy, sugar must be white and have a medium size grain.
Water
Water is used to dissolve the saccharose and the rest of the ingredients.
Cornstarch
This is used as a molding agent. The cornstarch molds can be reused, which reduces costs. During the molding stage, the cornstarch serves as support to the candy, gives them shape and absorbs the humidity. This causes the formation of an external skin that is easy to handle.
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