Gud (jaggery): a traditional sweetener — how to choose it and use it wisely
Jaggery is the unrefined sugar of Indian villages, eaten after meals, in winter chikkis and in countless sweets. It carries a little iron and minerals and a rich caramel flavour — but it's still sugar. Used in small amounts in place of white sugar, it has a rightful place in the kitchen.
The Ayurvedic view
Guda is described in Ayurveda as sweet and heating (especially when old), nourishing, relieving vata and helping digestion when taken in small amounts after meals — hence the North Indian habit of a small piece of gud after lunch. Old jaggery (purana guda) is considered lighter and more beneficial than fresh. Modern nutrition confirms that jaggery retains some minerals lost in refined sugar, but the amounts are small, and its effect on blood sugar is similar to sugar.
Ingredients
- Good-quality jaggery (dark golden to brown, without bright yellow colour)
- For til-gud chikki: 1 cup sesame or peanuts, ¾ cup grated jaggery, 1 teaspoon ghee, a pinch of cardamom
How to prepare
- Chikki: dry-roast the sesame or peanuts. Melt jaggery with ghee on low heat until it bubbles and a drop in cold water turns hard and brittle. Stir in the seeds and cardamom, spread quickly on a greased plate, cut while warm.
How to use
- A small piece (5–10 g) of jaggery after lunch, especially in winter.
- Use jaggery instead of sugar in chai, kheer, halwa and chutneys — in the same small quantities, not more.
- Enjoy chikki or til-gud laddoo as an occasional winter snack.
Helpful habits
- Very bright yellow or light jaggery may be chemically bleached; organic, darker jaggery is usually less processed.
- Store in an airtight container; jaggery absorbs moisture and becomes sticky.
Precautions
- Jaggery raises blood sugar like sugar — people with diabetes or prediabetes should treat it as sugar and follow their doctor's advice; it is not a ‘diabetic-friendly’ sweetener.
- Keep portions small if you are trying to lose weight or have fatty liver.
- Brush or rinse after sticky sweets to protect teeth.
