Jaggery vs sugar: what actually differs, and what does not

If you are reading this, you are probably thinking about the sugar that goes into your family's food every day. In the chai, the kheer, the kids' milk. Maybe someone told you gud is healthier. Maybe you just have a feeling that something less processed has to be better.

You are partly right. But there is a lot of loose talk about jaggery out there, and since this is about what you feed the people you love, you deserve the straight version. Here it is, including the parts that do not help us sell gud.

Calories: almost the same

This surprises a lot of people. Spoon for spoon, gud and white sugar have nearly the same calories. Our Jaggery Powder is 383 kcal per 100 g, and white sugar is about 387.

So if the goal is weight loss, switching from sugar to gud will not do it on its own. Using less of either will.

Minerals: gud keeps them, in small amounts

To make white sugar, sugarcane juice is refined until almost nothing is left except sweetness. Gud skips that step, so it keeps some of what was in the cane. Our powder has about 11 mg of iron, 70 mg of magnesium and over 1,000 mg of potassium per 100 g.

Be realistic about what that means, though. One teaspoon is about 5 g, which gives you roughly half a milligram of iron. That is something. It is not a cure for anaemia, and it is not a replacement for dal, greens or your doctor's advice.

If someone at home has diabetes

Please read this part carefully. Gud is still mostly sugar, and it raises blood sugar much like white sugar does.

If someone in your family has diabetes, treat gud exactly like sugar and go by what their doctor says. If anyone tells you jaggery is "safe for diabetics", they are not telling you the truth. That includes people selling gud.

Taste: where gud clearly wins

White sugar just tastes sweet. Gud has a caramel, slightly earthy taste that makes chai, dal and laddoos taste fuller. Because of that, a lot of people find they naturally use a bit less. That is a real, everyday benefit.

How it is made matters more than you think

A lot of the gud sold in markets is whitened with sulphur and other chemicals so it looks pale and "clean". That is the gud to avoid. Good gud is golden-brown to dark brown and is cleaned with plant extracts instead. Our guide shows you how to spot the difference at the shop.

The short version

Switch to gud because it is less processed and tastes better, and use it in the same amounts you would use sugar. That is the honest reason to make the change, and for most families it is a good one.