Piloncillo

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This article needs additional citations for verification.
Please help improve this article by adding reliable references. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (May 2008)

Piloncillo is the name given in Mexico to small blocks or bricks of unrefined solid cane sugar. They are also often seen in the shape of small truncated cones.

In Central America and South America they are called Panela or "tapa dulce" (in Costa Rica) because of its bottle-cap shape, and may or may not be cone-shaped. In Panama it is also called raspadura, thought to derive from the words "raspar" (to scrape) and "duro" (hard), a reference to the way the hard sugar brick is shaven to produce usable shards for cooking. The local dialect often drops the letter "s", resulting in the word we hear as "ra'padura" or rapadura.

The color of piloncillo ranges from light tan to dark brown. For the longest time piloncillo was considered an inferior sweetener. It was used as a cheaper substitute for refined sugar, especially in dishes and desserts that did not require the clear color of refined sugar.

Despite its inferior reputation, many desserts originating (and still consumed) in Mexico are made to this day using piloncillo, such as atole, capirotada, sweet potatoes, flan, and more.