How to Make Cane Syrup
Sugar cane syrup is made from the juice of the sugar cane plant. The cane must be cut and pressed to release the juice. Some areas of the country have commercial presses available, but the home user will have to locate a cane press in order to do the task. These can be found occasionally at farm auctions in the south where sugar cane is grown. Does this Spark an idea?
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Things You'll Need
- Cane shredder
- Cane press
- Large, flat shallow-sided evaporator pan
- Smaller metal ring for evaporator pan
- Long-handled shallow ladle
- Fire
- Large colander
- Cheesecloth
- Funnel
- Jars w/lids
Instructions
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1
Use the can shredder to break the cane stalks into pieces.
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2
Run the shredded cane through the presser to release the juices from the cane. As a rule of thumb, 100 lbs. of sugar cane yields around 50 lbs. of juice.
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3
Build a fire under the evaporator pan and pour the cane juice into the evaporator pan.
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4
Use the ladle to skim the heavy foam that appears on top of the juice as it reaches the boiling point. Discard the foam.
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5
Place the smaller ring in the center of the evaporator pan. As the juice boils, the impure foam spills over into this ring making it easier to remove.
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6
Keep the fire hot under the pan. The cane juice takes four to five hours of boiling time to reduce to syrup. The juice should remain at or above the boiling point at all times.
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7
Line a colander with cheesecloth. Place the colander over a large bowl or stock pot.
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8
Ladle the syrup into the colander, allowing it to strain into the bowl through the cheesecloth to remove any remaining impurities.
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9
Ladle the syrup from the bowls into jars using to funnel to prevent spills. Cap the jars tightly.
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Tips & Warnings
Sugar cane should only be harvested when it is ripe. The seed heads of the cane stalk will have turned brown and are easy to remove when the cane is ripe. Making cane syrup is not labor intensive, but it does require that someone be watching the cooking juice at all times. Expect a 16:1 ratio of juice to syrup.
