If you soak your dates for at least 8 hours in whatever temperature water you like to start the sugar extraction process, then puree or at least chop them up with at least twice the amount of water you suggest to further break down the cell structure that is holding the sugars, then use your stovetop method of reduction your get at least 20% greater yield. Even then, discarding the bagasse is wasteful. I can't conceive why you would say the kasu or dregs are not tasty. They're definitely not date jam, but they have many uses and have a very low glycemic index. And there are still fermentable starches in there.
What does Metamucil taste like? The psyllium solution? You should make your own for pennies and add a teaspoon of date syrup to it. My Dad just said he adds anise seeds to his if he ever needs it. Oh, did you see you omitted a measurement for psyllium in your recipe?
Thank you for the soaking tip; I'll try it out next time. As for why I would say the strained pulp was not palatable, it's pretty simple: I tasted it and found it reminiscent of lightly hydrated Metamucil ! Waste is never my wish, so if you know of many uses for this by-product, please share some ideas (other than adding some to bread dough or porridge, as I suggested to Faye).
Sure. I’m not publishing until Sunday anyway. Here’s a few things I cover in the article.
One of the best and funnest thing to do with it is to take a bottle of soy sauce - or a soy free or gluten free analog - and make what is called kecap manis. It’s basically kind of like a oisin sauce in liquid form, although it can be intensely sweet and have added start anise etc. Add to the soy sauce along with other spices, plus 15% of the weight of the date addition in salt if you are using a low sodium version. It’s really quite fabulous. If you boil it as kecap manis is, it will last forever.
Then there is hoisin sauce itself. I’ve made quite a lot over the years using the dregs from date syrups.
There is also the option of adding a small amount of pectinase available from any brewing store and online. In dates, and in a lot of other plants as well, sugars (polysaccharides called pectins) get trapped in the celluar structure of dates tends to traps sugars. The enzyme pectinase breaks those down into maltose that is released int the solution. The enzyme gets denatured when heated above 200 so it works similar to a diastatic malt in baking. Which might be useful but not something most bakers would want other than in a non-diastatic form.
If you want to make an iteresting artisan beer, hopped or not, add this to your mash and cook along with any malts you are using.
This stuff makes great vinegar, especiallly if you caramelize what you have left over and proceed in yoiur standard vinegar making protocol. Add some to an existing unstrained - with the mother - vinegar and age it out for a while. it will begin to take on a haunting balsamic quality. That’s one I would strain well, then and age anerobicallly lest it turn to water.
Then two of my favorite all time things to do with it are to dehydrate it and make either a podi or a furikake with it. I add assorted spices like cumin,black caraway, turmeric, mustard seeds, debittered fenugreek seeds, dried peppers of different ranges of heat (actually usually Kashmiri for those that really don’t like the heat) and use as a sprinkle. Similar to how one might use a finishing salt. Ideed, salt can be added to the mix. This can even be added to a tarka, especially with mustard oil, and perhaps in lieu of any ground dahl. A furikake is basicaly te Japanese concept of the seasoning. I’ll usuallly add roasted nori and sesame seeds to that one.
Of course mixing it with old rye bread (or any bread or corn cobs or kvass dregs), and whatever herbs suit your fancy it’s fantastic in black salt, or what Darra Goldstein calls Thursday salt. Those concerned about sodium chloride intake, as well as calcium - not to mention avoiding burning in Hell! - might want to look into it as a salt reduction agent and umami enhancer. I’ve added some to barbecue sauce and it rocked.
We often introduce different microbes, sometimes koji, to bogassa of this type, but I’m currently making a malt (as in toasted sprouted wheat) and date dregs amasake that I will turn into what we call koji honey (or amakoji) by maillarding it out at 162F for a few days. Sounds comploicating, but it is not at all so. Mix. Throw in Instant Pot. 3 days later you have the most amasake unique sweetener thing that bees had nothing to do with.
And as always as the world make believe they are trying to address the massive amount of food waste that is bogassa it can be turned into biofuel to replace petrol, but it’s highly unlikely that any company will step up and actually do anything other than talk about the issue.
There’s actually 25 but you get the idea. Practically speaking if you do make date syrup often you can store the stuff in the freezer until you have accumulated enough to make any of these things worth while. Or just compost it. As I state in my story, bogassa like this is bette than most. It has not been treated with any chemicals or salt, two things that make sustainability a hugely expensve practice.
Thank you, Faye. I wanted to give suggestions for other uses for the pulp—I imagined it could easily be worked into a bread dough or a porridge—but the flavor and texture of the pulp itself is rather unpleasant, so I didn’t want to make these recommendations without testing them out first!
Loved the time lapse videos you included! I enjoyed reading about Just Dates and will look for that brand now. I haven’t been brand-specific when buying date products, but I didn’t know about this wonderful company! Family gathering coming up soon and we have a couple of vegans in the crowd, so your cookie recipe is timely! Perhaps I’ll try the date syrup swap you mentioned syrup in my practice batch and see how it goes.
I often go with what's least expensive and available, but JD's products are very high-quality and it's a great company that I've been lucky to do a little bit of work with.
If you soak your dates for at least 8 hours in whatever temperature water you like to start the sugar extraction process, then puree or at least chop them up with at least twice the amount of water you suggest to further break down the cell structure that is holding the sugars, then use your stovetop method of reduction your get at least 20% greater yield. Even then, discarding the bagasse is wasteful. I can't conceive why you would say the kasu or dregs are not tasty. They're definitely not date jam, but they have many uses and have a very low glycemic index. And there are still fermentable starches in there.
What does Metamucil taste like? The psyllium solution? You should make your own for pennies and add a teaspoon of date syrup to it. My Dad just said he adds anise seeds to his if he ever needs it. Oh, did you see you omitted a measurement for psyllium in your recipe?
Hi Ken,
Thank you for the soaking tip; I'll try it out next time. As for why I would say the strained pulp was not palatable, it's pretty simple: I tasted it and found it reminiscent of lightly hydrated Metamucil ! Waste is never my wish, so if you know of many uses for this by-product, please share some ideas (other than adding some to bread dough or porridge, as I suggested to Faye).
Sure. I’m not publishing until Sunday anyway. Here’s a few things I cover in the article.
One of the best and funnest thing to do with it is to take a bottle of soy sauce - or a soy free or gluten free analog - and make what is called kecap manis. It’s basically kind of like a oisin sauce in liquid form, although it can be intensely sweet and have added start anise etc. Add to the soy sauce along with other spices, plus 15% of the weight of the date addition in salt if you are using a low sodium version. It’s really quite fabulous. If you boil it as kecap manis is, it will last forever.
Then there is hoisin sauce itself. I’ve made quite a lot over the years using the dregs from date syrups.
There is also the option of adding a small amount of pectinase available from any brewing store and online. In dates, and in a lot of other plants as well, sugars (polysaccharides called pectins) get trapped in the celluar structure of dates tends to traps sugars. The enzyme pectinase breaks those down into maltose that is released int the solution. The enzyme gets denatured when heated above 200 so it works similar to a diastatic malt in baking. Which might be useful but not something most bakers would want other than in a non-diastatic form.
If you want to make an iteresting artisan beer, hopped or not, add this to your mash and cook along with any malts you are using.
This stuff makes great vinegar, especiallly if you caramelize what you have left over and proceed in yoiur standard vinegar making protocol. Add some to an existing unstrained - with the mother - vinegar and age it out for a while. it will begin to take on a haunting balsamic quality. That’s one I would strain well, then and age anerobicallly lest it turn to water.
Then two of my favorite all time things to do with it are to dehydrate it and make either a podi or a furikake with it. I add assorted spices like cumin,black caraway, turmeric, mustard seeds, debittered fenugreek seeds, dried peppers of different ranges of heat (actually usually Kashmiri for those that really don’t like the heat) and use as a sprinkle. Similar to how one might use a finishing salt. Ideed, salt can be added to the mix. This can even be added to a tarka, especially with mustard oil, and perhaps in lieu of any ground dahl. A furikake is basicaly te Japanese concept of the seasoning. I’ll usuallly add roasted nori and sesame seeds to that one.
Of course mixing it with old rye bread (or any bread or corn cobs or kvass dregs), and whatever herbs suit your fancy it’s fantastic in black salt, or what Darra Goldstein calls Thursday salt. Those concerned about sodium chloride intake, as well as calcium - not to mention avoiding burning in Hell! - might want to look into it as a salt reduction agent and umami enhancer. I’ve added some to barbecue sauce and it rocked.
We often introduce different microbes, sometimes koji, to bogassa of this type, but I’m currently making a malt (as in toasted sprouted wheat) and date dregs amasake that I will turn into what we call koji honey (or amakoji) by maillarding it out at 162F for a few days. Sounds comploicating, but it is not at all so. Mix. Throw in Instant Pot. 3 days later you have the most amasake unique sweetener thing that bees had nothing to do with.
And as always as the world make believe they are trying to address the massive amount of food waste that is bogassa it can be turned into biofuel to replace petrol, but it’s highly unlikely that any company will step up and actually do anything other than talk about the issue.
There’s actually 25 but you get the idea. Practically speaking if you do make date syrup often you can store the stuff in the freezer until you have accumulated enough to make any of these things worth while. Or just compost it. As I state in my story, bogassa like this is bette than most. It has not been treated with any chemicals or salt, two things that make sustainability a hugely expensve practice.
Thank you for this interesting article. In Israel date syrup is known as Silan and is popular for sweet and savory dishes.
Is there nothing to do with the date pulp besides compost?
Thank you, Faye. I wanted to give suggestions for other uses for the pulp—I imagined it could easily be worked into a bread dough or a porridge—but the flavor and texture of the pulp itself is rather unpleasant, so I didn’t want to make these recommendations without testing them out first!
Brian, I love how much I learn whenever I read your newsletter. Thank you for sharing all of your amazing research with us here!
That is so nice to hear, Maddie. Thank you very much for reading and for taking the time to share your kind words!
Loved the time lapse videos you included! I enjoyed reading about Just Dates and will look for that brand now. I haven’t been brand-specific when buying date products, but I didn’t know about this wonderful company! Family gathering coming up soon and we have a couple of vegans in the crowd, so your cookie recipe is timely! Perhaps I’ll try the date syrup swap you mentioned syrup in my practice batch and see how it goes.
I often go with what's least expensive and available, but JD's products are very high-quality and it's a great company that I've been lucky to do a little bit of work with.