Is lucuma powder healthy as a sugar substitute?
-
We all should eat less sugar, we often hear. On the other hand, few people feel like giving up sweets for good. For that reason, sugar substitutes are becoming increasingly popular. One of the strains that is on the rise is lucuma powder.
-
Nowadays you can find this powder on the shelves in large supermarkets, often even advertised as a superfood. But what is it actually, and what do you use it for? And is lucuma powder healthy if you are trying to lose weight, for example?
What is lucuma powder?
-
Lucuma powder - the name says it all - is made from the lucuma fruit. This is a round, yellow fruit that grows naturally only in South America, and has been used there as a sweetener for centuries. Even now it is still difficult to grow the fruit elsewhere in the world, because the lucuma tree only grows in a very specific climate.
-
11 minMain dishpeanut oil, tofu stir-fry cubes finely seasoned, stir fry sauce sweet and sour, thick noodles, carrot julienne, beetroot julienne, yellow bell pepper, watercress,rainbow salad with tofu -
45 minMain dishRed cabbage, mild olive oil, quinoa plus, forest outing, lemon, sesame oil, soy sauce less salt, Bio Today tahini white in pot, tap water,grilled red cabbage with quinoa salad -
30 minDessertBrie, Roquefort, port salut, gruyere, Camembert, walnut, garlic, thyme, honey, grape, baguette, Red onion, red grape, raisins, Red wine, Red wine vinegar, Brown sugar,generous cheese plate with onion marmalade -
30 minDessertFull Milk, whipped cream, macaroon, custard powder, vanilla sugar, sugar, protein, amaretto, almond liqueur, basic recipe cooking pears,macaroon pastry with casserole
-
Fortunately, a solution has been found: the fruit is dried after harvest and ground into powder. This way the end product has a longer shelf life and can be easily exported and used.
Lucuma powder as a sugar substitute
-
Lucuma powder still has the same sweet taste as the fruit it is made of. You can roughly compare it with the taste of caramel. Moreover, you can easily use it in all kinds of dishes, because it can be dissolved in moisture just like sugar.
-
Partly for this reason, Lucuma is becoming increasingly popular as an alternative to regular sugar. It is a bit easier to use than, for example, dried fruit, which you first have to grind yourself! And to sweeten your tea, for example, this is one of the few â € naturalâ € ™ options.
-
5 minDrink without alcoholbananas, cool fresh apple-pear raspberry juice, Soy drink vanilla,soy fruit shake -
20 minMain dishsauerkraut, sticking potato, liquid baking product, half-to-half minced, Spice meatballs, pineapple, olive oil, liquid baking product,gratin sauerkraut dish with minced meat -
40 minMain dishlemongrass, fresh ginger, Red peppers, onions, tomato cubes, fresh cod fillet, coriander, oil, ground turmeric (koenjit), coconut milk, salt,fish in creamy coconut sauce -
15 minSide dishsweet potato, soft goat cheese, egg, spring / forest onion,stuffed sweet potato with egg
Benefits of lucuma powder
-
But why would you choose to replace your sugar with this remedy now? An important plus of lucuma powder is that it makes your blood sugar level rise less quickly. It contains more fiber and slow carbohydrates, which greatly reduces that glucose peak.
-
In addition, lucuma powder is healthy because it contains more nutrients than sugar. It contains some B vitamins, calcium and phosphorus. The powder also contains antioxidants, which counteract cell damage caused by free radicals. Some of the nutrients from the fruit are lost during the processing process, but there is still quite a bit left!
Is lucuma powder healthy?
-
Does all that mean that from now on you have to throw lucuma powder everywhere? That is still a little bit dubious. As said: we know that there are many healthy substances in the product, so that is positive. But because lucuma is a relatively new product, not much research has yet been done into its precise effects.
-
20 minMain dishTasty vine tomato, (olive oil, fresh basil, onion, garlic, Parmigiano Reggiano, zucchini spaghetti, pumpkin spaghetti, mini buffalo mozzarella,lukewarm pumpkin and zucchini spaghetti -
15 minSide dishtraditional olive oil, curry powder, wheat flour, coconut milk, sambal oelek, chicken broth tablet, water, fresh mango,curry sauce with mango -
30 minMain dishtraditional olive oil, lean ground beef, frozen Mexican wok vegetables, salsa sauce mild, taco shell, grated young cheese, creme fraiche,Mexican vegetable in tacos -
95 minMain dishmaize chicken, lemon, coarse sea salt, pepper, extra virgin olive oil, garlic, thyme, zucchini, tomatoes (small to), black olives without pit,provençal chicken with zucchini and tomatoes
-
So we don't know if lucuma powder is healthy in the long term. For that reason, you better be a little careful and don't suddenly use mountains of the stuff! A scoop every now and then for a sweet accent is more than enough.
Is lucuma powder calorie free?
-
Finally, one last point: some sources claim that lucuma powder contains no calories at all. That sounds great if you want to lose weight, but unfortunately it is also nonsense. Lucuma contains roughly as many calories as regular sugar, 367 versus 386 kcal per 100 grams.
-
Slightly less of those calories come from carbohydrates. Instead, it also contains a few grams of protein. Despite these small differences, it makes no sense to replace sugar with lucuma if you want to save calories! You really need some bigger changes.