Jaggery

Jaggery is an unrefined cane sugar widely used in South and Southeast Asian cooking. Unlike white sugar which provides clean sweetness, jaggery has a complex caramel-toffee flavour with hints of molasses, making it ideal for dressings, curries and desserts where depth of flavour matters. It comes in blocks or paste form and ranges from golden to dark brown - darker varieties have a stronger, more treacly taste. In dressings, jaggery dissolves into the liquid components and provides the essential sweet element that balances sour lime juice, salty fish sauce and fiery chilli. If unavailable, palm sugar is the closest substitute, followed by soft dark brown sugar.