If you’re looking for the best molasses substitute, you’ve come to the right place. This is the ultimate guide for learning the most effective substitutes for molasses, how to use them, and what recipes each replacement works best in.
Jump to:
- What is molasses?
- Types of molasses
- Unsulfured molasses vs. Sulfured molasses
- What is molasses used for?
- Considerations when replacing molasses
- What is the best molasses substitute?
- 1. Dark corn syrup
- 2. Maple syrup
- 3. Sorghum syrup
- 4. Honey
- 5. Agave syrup
- 6. Date syrup
- 7. Brown rice syrup
- 8. Black Treacle
- 9. Barley malt syrup
- 10. Granulated sugar + water
- 11. Golden syrup
- 12. Cane syrup
- 13. Carob syrup
- 14. Brown sugar
- 15. Coconut Nectar
- Homemade molasses substitute
- Best molasses substitute for baking
- What can I use instead of molasses in gingerbread?
- Molasses Substitute FAQs
- More Substitute Guides
- The BEST Molasses Substitute
What is molasses?
Molasses is a thick, syrupy liquid that is the byproduct of the sugar making process. It’s made when the juices from sugar cane or sugar beets are extracted and reduced by boiling, causing a separation of sugar crystals. The sugar is removed, and the leftover substance is molasses.
Types of molasses
There are three grades of molasses, which are distinguished by how many times they were boiled:
Light molasses is the sweetest and mildest form. It is lighter in color and boiled only once. Light molasses is pleasant enough that you can use it as a maple syrup substitute, drizzled on pancakes.
Dark molasses is darker and thicker than light molasses, and it also contains less sweetness. This variety, which is the type you use in gingerbread recipes, is boiled twice.
Blackstrap molasses is the most intense and bitter tasting. Boiled three times, this very thick syrup is less commonly used in food but can be taken as a supplement for its nutrients and health benefits.
Unsulfured molasses vs. Sulfured molasses
Unsulfured molasses is produced from fully matured sugar cane, whereas sulphured molasses is made from green sugarcane, which has not yet matured. The green sugarcane is treated with sulfur dioxide to keep it preserved until processing.
Unsulfured molasses is widely regarded as the ideal option for cooking and baking, thanks to its pure, natural, and sweet taste. Sulfured molasses is not commonly used due to its chemical taste and bitterness. Typically in grocery stores, you will only find the unsulphured variety.
What is molasses used for?
With a distinct flavor that is both sweet and bitter, molasses plays a vital role in recipes. It adds a delicious, caramelized taste that can build barbecue sauces and marinades in savory recipes and deliver chewiness and classic gingerbread flavor in sweet recipes.
Considerations when replacing molasses
When deciding what to use instead of molasses, it’s important to keep in mind that each alternative will have a slightly different flavor, which could affect your overall recipe. Substitutions for molasses can also have different textures and colors that can cause your final dish to look or feel different than originally intended.
Molasses also attracts moisture, meaning baked goods that use molasses end up being very moist and fudgy. Not all replacements have the ability to replicate that.
What is the best molasses substitute?
There are so many great molasses substitutes, but the best substitute changes with each recipe. Brown sugar has a solid molasses taste, while dark corn syrup has a similar thick, syrupy texture. You’ll also find that mixing substitutes or even adding extra spices might be the best way to substitute molasses in your recipes.
Here are some of the best substitutes that will show you how to replace molasses in both sweet and savory recipes:
- Dark corn syrup
- Maple syrup
- Honey
- Sorghum syrup
- Agave syrup
- Date syrup
- Brown rice syrup
- Black Treacle
- Barley malt syrup
- Granulated sugar + water
- Golden syrup
- Cane syrup
- Carob syrup
- Brown sugar
- Coconut Nectar
- Homemade molasses
1. Dark corn syrup
Dark corn syrup is a sweet syrup made from corn syrup and a small amount of refiners syrup, which gives it a molasses-like flavor. It is a good sub for molasses in recipes that don’t rely on the ingredient for its dominant bittersweet flavor, such as pecan pie.
How to use it:
Use a 1:1 ratio when substituting dark corn syrup for molasses. It is an excellent molasses substitute for cookies, sauces, and pies.
2. Maple syrup
Pure maple syrup is a sticky and flavorful sweetener made from the sap of maple trees. It has a thinner consistency and lighter flavor than molasses but can stand in its place as both a topping and as an ingredient in recipes.
How to use it:
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Use a 1:1 ratio when substituting maple syrup for molasses. For the deepest flavor, use a dark maple syrup because it has a more caramel-like flavor, similar to molasses. Maple syrup, as an alternative to molasses, works well in some cookies, cakes, and glazes.
3. Sorghum syrup
Sorghum syrup comes from the juice of the sorghum plant. When the plant’s stalks are crushed, they produce a green juice that is boiled down into a thick, dark syrup. Sorghum syrup has a thinner consistency than molasses and a sweeter taste.
How to use it:
Use a 1:1 ratio when substituting sorghum syrup for molasses but reduce the amount of sugar in the recipe by ¼-1/3 to avoid an overly sweet recipe. In baking, sorghum syrup works as a molasses substitute in cookies, pies, muffins, and other sweet recipes.
4. Honey
You might be wondering, can I substitute honey for molasses? You definitely can swap it in for those sweeter recipes. Honey has a thick, syrupy consistency and a distinctly sweet flavor. While it has a similar texture, honey does not taste like molasses. You may find it helpful to increase the spices in the recipe slightly to preserve some of the originally intended flavors.
How to use it:
To replace molasses substitute honey at a 1:1 ratio. This alternative works best in baked desserts and sweet glazes.
5. Agave syrup
Agave syrup is a sweetener that comes from the agave plant. There is light, amber, and dark agave syrup, with the darkest being the most similar to molasses in flavor. Although agave syrup is sweeter and less viscous than molasses, it can still be a good substitute for molasses in cookies, cakes, and bread recipes.
How to use it:
Use a 1:1 ratio when substituting agave syrup for molasses. It’s important to consider that agave syrup is much sweeter than molasses, so you may want to reduce the amount of sugar in your recipe by about ⅓.
6. Date syrup
Dates are a sweet fruit that you can mash or puree, then boil into a thick syrup. Date syrup, sometimes called date molasses, is a popular substitution for molasses in cooking, baking, and as a topping because of its similar consistency and caramel-like flavor.
How to use it:
Use a 1:1 ratio when substituting date syrup for molasses. It works well in baked goods, such as gingerbread. It also makes a great topping for pancakes and waffles.
7. Brown rice syrup
Brown rice syrup is a sweetener made by fermenting brown rice and boiling down the resulting syrup until it becomes very thick. It is less sweet than many of the other molasses substitutes, but it works as a substitute even though you’ll need to use more of it.
How to use it:
To use brown rice syrup as a substitute for molasses, add twice as much as the amount of molasses the recipe calls for. For example, if the recipe calls for ½ cup of molasses, replace it with 1 cup of brown rice syrup. Brown rice syrup is commonly used in baking recipes, e.g., granola bars, cookies, and cakes.
8. Black Treacle
Treacle is a sweetener often referred to as British molasses. Like molasses, treacle is also made from the byproduct of refining sugar cane or sugar beets. There are two varieties, light treacle and dark treacle or black treacle.
Black treacle is much darker and thicker. It also has a more bitter flavor, making it a good blackstrap molasses substitute.
How to use it:
To replace molasses substitute treacle at a 1:1 ratio. It is commonly used in British baking recipes, e.g., treacle tarts, Christmas puddings, and fruit cakes. It can also be a molasses substitute gingerbread lovers would appreciate.
9. Barley malt syrup
Barley malt syrup is a liquid sweetener made from sprouted malted barley. It has a thick, syrupy consistency and a less sweet flavor, making it an excellent dark molasses substitute in recipes, e.g., muffins and spice cakes, as well as savory dishes, e.g., baked beans. Barley malt syrup is less sweet than molasses, so you may need to add more depending on how sweet your recipe is meant to be.
How to use it:
To produce a sweeter recipe, use ¾ cup of barley malt syrup for every ½ cup of molasses your recipe calls for. However, if you’d like a less sweet final product, you can use a 1:1 ratio.
10. Granulated sugar + water
A mixture of granulated sugar and water creates a simple syrup, which can be used as a substitute for molasses. It will not have the same depth of flavor, but it will add sweetness and moisture to your baked goods. This alternative works best as a substitute for molasses in light-tasting recipes that only call for a small amount of molasses.
How to use it:
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Combine ½ cup granulated sugar and ½ cup of water in a saucepan and cook until the syrup slightly thickens. This makes 1 cup of molasses substitute. Allow the mixture to cool before using it in baking recipes.
11. Golden syrup
While not available in the United States, golden syrup is a sweetener made from inverted syrup and an acid such as lemon juice. You might wonder, can I use golden syrup instead of molasses? And the answer is yes. You can view it as a molasses UK substitute.
It’s similar to honey in color and consistency, but since it’s made from sugar cane, golden syrup works best as a substitute in recipes that use molasses for its sweetness and texture rather than its distinct, bittersweet flavor.
If you do not live in an area that sells golden syrup, you can easily make a golden syrup substitute at home with just a handful of ingredients.
How to use it:
To replace molasses substitute golden syrup at a 1:1 ratio. It works best in recipes that call for light molasses since the flavor is more subtle.
12. Cane syrup
Cane syrup is a sweetener made from sugar cane juice that has been boiled down until it turns into syrup. It has a thick consistency and a sweet, deep caramel-like flavor. Although it has a molasses-like flavor, it specifically does not have a bitter taste. You can use cane syrup in everything from cookies and baked goods to marinades and sauces.
How to use it:
Use a 1:1 ratio when substituting cane syrup for molasses.
13. Carob syrup
Carob syrup is a sweetener made by cooking the fruit of the carob pod with water, then reducing that liquid down into a thick syrup. It has a sweet flavor with notes similar to molasses but carries a hint of chocolate and fruit flavors as well.
The consistency and slight bitterness make carob syrup a good molasses replacement in gingerbread, chocolate chip cookies, and oatmeal-based baked goods.
How to use it:
Use a 1:1 ratio when substituting carob syrup for molasses. Add it to baking recipes that won’t become unbalanced with the addition of a slightly bitter chocolate flavor.
14. Brown sugar
Brown sugar is made by mixing white granulated sugar with a small amount of molasses. This gives it a higher moisture content and a deeper flavor. Although it is not a liquid, brown sugar can be a good alternative to molasses in cookies and quick bread recipes. Dark brown sugar will have a stronger molasses flavor than light brown sugar. However, both can be adequate replacements.
How to use it:
To use brown sugar as a molasses sugar substitute, substitute 1 cup molasses with ¾ cup brown sugar, specifically packed brown sugar. Be mindful of the fact that you may need to increase the amount of liquid in your recipe.
15. Coconut Nectar
Coconut nectar is the minimally processed sap that comes from the flowers of the coconut palm tree. Its flavor is a mix of maple syrup and molasses with both sweetness and an earthy taste, making it a suitable replacement for molasses in many recipes.
How to use it
Substitute coconut nectar for molasses at a 1:1 ratio.
Homemade molasses substitute
If instead of a pre-made substitute, you’d like to make your own molasses alternative, it’s a very simple process that only requires three ingredients. Making actual molasses would involve juicing and boiling down your own sugar cane, but making brown sugar syrup is a much more practical homemade solution.
Ingredients for homemade molasses substitute
- 2 cups of dark brown sugar (you can substitute this with a brown sugar substitute, e.g., muscovado sugar)
- 1 cup of water
- 1 tablespoon of freshly squeezed lemon juice
How to make molasses from scratch
- Add all ingredients to a medium saucepan. Whisk to combine.
- Cook slowly over medium heat for about 5 minutes until the mixture is thick and syrupy. Be careful not to overheat, or the syrup will caramelize.
- Store your brown sugar syrup in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 4 months, reheating to its liquid state before using.
Best molasses substitute for baking
Baking with molasses can add moisture and delicious, complex flavor to your recipes. Making your own homemade molasses substitute is the best substitute for baking recipes because it is quick to make and already contains molasses in the brown sugar.
However, if you’d prefer a store-bought alternative, the easiest substitute for molasses in baking is dark corn syrup. Dark corn syrup has a thick consistency, sweet flavor, and dark color, making it a close substitute for molasses that is readily available at your local grocery store. You can also mix dark corn syrup with honey to create a more complex flavor that has a depth more similar to molasses.
What can I use instead of molasses in gingerbread?
For gingerbread recipes, a mixture of dark corn syrup and brown sugar will make a close molasses substitute in both taste and texture. Start with a base of dark corn syrup and slowly mix in brown sugar. Taste and adjust until you reach the right flavor.
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