Rice Syrup

A grain syrup and sweetener made from whole grain rice that has been cultured and fermented with enzymes to break down the natural starches into complex carbohydrates, maltose and glucose. As the rice grain is boiled and the liquid removed, the remaining meal is processed into a syrup with complex rather than simple sugars. This enables the syrup sugars to be absorbed more slowly by the digestive system rather than being aborbed quickly into the bloodstream, creating rapid increases in blood glucose and accumulating as fat as occurs with other fast acting sweeteners. The glucose is absorbed immediately while the maltose and carbohydrates absorb over several hours. Containing only half the sweetness of common sugar, rice syrup provides a mildly sweet butterscotch flavor for cookies, cakes, granola, pies, and puddings. When used in baked goods, this syrup will generally create a more crisp or harder textured result. Some varieties of rice syrup are gluten free, using only rice, water and enzymes for the production of the syrup.

Similar to other syrups, rice syrup should be kept in a cool dry area where will last for up to a year. Used as a substitute for white or brown sugar, varieties of rice syrup include brown rice syrup, rice bran syrup, rice malt, and yinnie syrup. Rice syrup may also be referred to as rice honey.