From scratch · Seasonings and stand-ins · A stand-in
Brown sugar
White sugar with a little molasses worked in: light or dark.
✋ 5 min hands-on
⏱ 5 min start to finish
🍽 About 1 cup, packed.
Ingredients
- 200 g granulated sugar
- 1 tbsp molasses, for dark brown; use 1½ teaspoons for light
Time
Hands-on time is when you’re busy; the rest is rising, simmering, chilling or cooling, when you can do something else.
| Step | Hands-on | Waiting |
|---|---|---|
| Mix | 5 min | – |
| In all | 5 min | 0 min |
How long it keeps
- Pantry: airtight, or it dries out and hardens (NDSU gives sugars 18 to 24 months).
Nutrition
Estimated from the ingredients’ USDA FoodData Central numbers.
Steps
You’ll need: bowl and fork, or a mixer.
- Work the molasses into the sugar with a fork (or a mixer on low) until the color is even and there are no streaks.
⚖️ ScalingStore brown sugar is white sugar with molasses added: about 3.5% molasses for light and 6.5% for dark, by volume (Wikipedia). That is about 1½ teaspoons (light) or 1 tablespoon (dark) per cup. NDSU’s chart uses ¼ cup molasses per cup of sugar, which makes a much darker, wetter sugar.
Good to knowIn a pinch, plain white sugar also works cup for cup (USU, Missouri), with less caramel flavor.
Sources
- Brown sugar, Wikipedia. Accessed 2026-10-25.
- Ingredient Substitutions (NDSU Extension FN198, 2013; reprinted by Purdue Extension as HHS-784-W), NDSU Extension. Accessed 2026-10-25.
- List of Ingredient Substitutions for Cooking and Baking, Utah State University Extension. Accessed 2026-10-25.
- In a Pinch: Ingredient Substitution (MP564), University of Missouri Extension. Accessed 2026-10-25.
- Food Storage Guide (FN579), NDSU Extension, reviewed January 2023. Accessed 2026-10-25.