palm sugar
An unrefined sugar made from the sap of palm trees, sold as a paste or hardened block; has a deep, slightly caramel/butterscotch flavor, common in Southeast Asian cooking.
Substitutions
- white sugar
Tips & common mistakes
Sold as a hard block or firm paste, it needs to be grated, chopped, or gently warmed before it will dissolve evenly into a dish -- dropped whole into a cold liquid, it just sits there undissolved.
Storage
It dries out and hardens further with air exposure, so keep it wrapped tightly or sealed; if it does harden past the point of easy chopping, a brief soak in warm water or a few seconds of steam softens it back to workable.