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The Large Crack

The sugar test "the large crack" (the hard-crack stage): the sugar snaps like glass; take it off the heat at once. Lemon juice or glucose prevents crystallization.

Source: Henriette Schønberg Erken, Stor kokebok, 1914-utg. s. 449 (falt i det fri)

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About the dish

The last stage before the sugar becomes caramel, and the stage that spun sugar and hard sugar work require. Erken reminds us that a couple of drops of lemon juice or a little glucose prevents the sugar from crystallizing — "graining."

How to make it

  1. 1

    Boil a moment more

    Boil the sugar a moment longer than to the small crack.

  2. 2

    Take the test

    Dip your index finger in cold water, then in the sugar, and immediately back into the water.

  3. 3

    Judge the sugar

    If the sugar snaps like glass, it has boiled to the large crack. Take the pot off the heat at once, for a few more seconds of boiling turns the sugar to caramel.

  4. 4

    Prevent crystallization

    To keep the sugar from graining, add a couple of drops of lemon juice or 1 tablespoon of glucose per kilo of sugar.

Changes from the original

No ingredient list in the original beyond the additions against crystallization; the technique is rewritten into steps in modern language. Grape sugar corresponds to glucose/glucose syrup.

Time machine – what changed?

Pick two editions and see what Henriette Schønberg Erken added, removed or changed between them.

1914 (proofread, p. 449) → Modernised~77% of the text changedremovedadded
sukkerlake under koking. 2 dråper sitronsaft (eller 1 ss druesukker (glukose) per kg sukker, mot krystallisering). 1 skål kaldt vann (til fingerprøven). Kok sukkeret et øieblik længere, dyp øyeblikk lenger enn til det lille knekk.. Dypp pekefingeren i koldt vand, derefter igjen kaldt vann, deretter i sukkeret og straks igjen hurtig i vandet; knækker nu vannet.. Knekker sukkeret som glas, glass, er sukkeret det kokt til det store knæk. Sukkeret maa da knekk. Ta gryten straks tages av ilden, da nogen faa varmen, for noen få sekunders videre kokning vil gjøre det koking gjør sukkeret til karamel. karamell.. For at å hindre sukkeret i at korne, kan man tilsætte sukkeret korner, tilsett et par draaper citronsaft dråper sitronsaft eller 1 spiseskefuld spiseskje druesukker pr. 1 kg. (glukose) per kilo sukker.

Note on Modernised

Ingen ingrediensliste i originalen ut over tilsetningene mot krystallisering; teknikken er skrevet om til trinn i moderne språk. Druesukker tilsvarer glukose/glukosesirup.

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Frequently asked questions

How do I know the sugar has reached "the large crack"?
Dip your index finger in cold water, then quickly in the sugar and immediately back into the water. If the sugar film snaps like glass, you are at the large crack.
What happens if I boil it a little too long?
Just a few more seconds of boiling turns the sugar to caramel. That is why the pot must be taken off the heat immediately when the test shows the large crack.
How do I keep the sugar from graining?
Add a couple of drops of lemon juice, or 1 tablespoon of glucose per 1 kg of sugar.
Where does this instruction come from?
From Henriette Schønberg Erken's "Stor kokebok" (Great Cookbook) (1914), p. 449, in the section on sugar work and decoration.

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