I was reading an issue of Wired’s dead tree edition that a friend had given me and they had a sidebar (not really a full article) on new sugar substitutes. The usual suspects such as aspartame and sucralose were there, but they also had high praise for one called tagatose which they described as “subtle & natural”. So, I checked online for more information and — go figure — found a Wired article on tagatose.
Like Splenda, tagatose is made from sugar, but tagatose is derived from milk sugars within whey. And, though Splenda already tastes very natural, apparently tagatose is virtually imperceptible from sugar. The only downside is that tagatose isn’t calorie-free — it has about 1/3 the calories of sugar. But, it doesn’t affect blood-sugar levels or cause cavities.
Levin whips out a set of keys, unlocks his desk, and rummages through a drawer. He pulls out a bag of tagatose-coated bran flakes and a chocolate bar, both creations of his Danish licensee. The bran is a little stale but sweet enough, and the chocolate tastes just like the real deal. He hands me a baggie of pure tagatose. I hold it up to the light, dab a little on my finger, and try it. A dead ringer for table sugar. […]
Though it’s not a calorie-free food, I’m still excited about another sugar substitute. With any luck, this will soon find its way into reduced-calorie chocolate bars and sodas (Spleda-based chocolate still doesn’t quite taste like the real thing). However, it appears that the tagatose folks don’t have quite the marketing arm of their Splenda counterparts; so, I have a hunch that it may be a while before tagatose becomes widespread.
I’ve been doing the Atkins march since January and am aquainted with Splenda. It’s pretty good, but the texture is different.
I read about the tagalose and want to see what it’s like if you bake with it.
I’ve got two bags of Erythritol that I’m about to do some experimenting with. It also shows blood sugar mitigation* in lab tests and has 0.2 calories/gram by US label standards.
It also crystallizes under heat, which means it will caramelize and can be used for candy, like fudge.
*Some people on some bulletin boards did their own tests with blood glucometers and registered a reaction (they are prone to -ol reactions anyway), so mileage varies.
Wow. Cool notes on Erythritol and tagatose.
How can you caramelize Erythritol or tagatose to make gooey caramel filling, like in a candy bar? Like, is it just – add to milk and then boil it? Or do you heat the powder, and then add milk?
I bought 25 Kg of Gaio brand tagatose from Arla foods to do some experimenting and prototype development. Here are some observations. First the good news:
* Yes, it carmelizes just fine, about exactly the way table sugar does. I made syrup out of it that was delicious. I made Bran muffins, with a buter/flour/tagatose struesel topping that browned, crisped, and tasted absolutely indistinguishable from a table sugar muffin.
* Since technically it IS a sugar, it measures and crystalizes pretty much exactly like sucrose (table sugar) or fructose. (Chemically, it is almost identical to l-fructose, just one hexane being reversed.) I have used it in ANY recipe, gram-for-gram, exactly like table sugar, and the results were consistent – no perceptable difference.
* After eating some and waiting a while, it left me extremely sated.
* Not only does tagatose itself have an EXTREMELY low glycemic index (3), it also acts as a “control rod” for the absorption of other starches and sugars, much like fiber. In fact, since it behaves so much like fiber in the intestines, Spherix wanted to be able to label it fiber. The FDA nixeed this though. Too bad. In light of modern thinking about diet and the bad effects of glucose spikes and resulting high insulin levels, this fiber-like behavior is tagatose’s main exciting atribute to my mind.
The not-so-good news:
* Anti-social brown properties: Like other non-digestable carbs, e.g. polyols and fiber, Tagatose gave me some pretty potent gas. And not just gas, at first, gobbling down irresponsible amounts of the aforementioned syrup pretty much liquified my whole digestive system, much like overindulgence in Sorbitol does. To be fair though, moderating intake improved that problem. Also, after a month or so, my guts got used to tagatose and I seem to have grown completely immune to the laxative effect. It still gives me gas though.
Use with other sweeteners: Spherix and Arla especially tout tagatose to use in combination with Splenda, sacharine or equal. I have found this to be a golden solution to the gas/diarreah problem. Tagatose splendidly masks the flavor of sacharine, yet retains its sweetness. For example, a teaspoon of tagatose in a 16 oz Diet Coke, miraculously transforms it into something that is astoundingly like regular Coke. Diet root beer works even better. And bran muffins too. For the sugar ingredient of the main muffin, I use 2/3 Brown Sugar Twin and 1/3 tagatose. For the streusel I use straight tagatose. These bran muffins are a miracle food. The tagatose 1) COMPLETLY masks the flavor of the sacharine, and 2) acts as a glucose control rod for the starch in the muffin. These are a sweet, bready treat with what must be a negligible glycemic load.
I think tagatose is a miracle food. I can’t wait till it is more prevalent as an ingredient of “smart-carb” foods. I follow the Zone diet and find it to be an exremely effective tool
Scott
Scott,
Can you tell me how you ordered the tagatose from Arla?
Also, how much did it cost?
yes please, how is one able to order some tagatose.
‘like that tagatose
Arla stopped selling tagatose. I called them, got an address and sent them a PO. I am trying to buy more from Spherix now for another round of prototype development, but no one answers the phone.
Arla charged me about $125 for 25 kg if I remember right.
In Thailand which supplier import “Tagatose” Can you give me the contract number of him/her.
The only sweetener I found, in 2019, that contains tagatose is SOLA sweetener. I used it in 2019 & 2020 to make an incredible sugar free version of pecan pie for the holidays. It carmelizes into a wonderful texture & makes a great, sweet pecan pie that tastes like the real thing. I just looked for it again this year (2021) to make my pies & I couldn’t find it. I contacted SOLA just a few days ago & they said they aren’t currently producing it due to global supply chain issues (thanks, covid????), but are hoping to restart production in mid-2022. From the back of the bag (I still have a 1/2 bag left over from last year), SOLA’s ingredients are: erythritol, tagatose, maltitol, monkfruit extract, xanthan gun, stevia leaf extract, natural flavors.
SOLA says on the bag that it was “created by a trained chef, not a scientist.” Also says it “dissolves, measures, caramelizes and tastes just like sugar, has 75% fewer calories, and zero net carbs.”
Maltitol usually has glycemic index issues (which seem to be ameliorated by the tagatose fiber?) and can have laxative effect issues,, but this product is definitely a winner for caramelization in sauces, syrups &, as I said, pecan pie. I went through pastry school, and can attest that it works just like sugar (sucrose) in baking/pastry applications. I can also say, even on a pretty strict keto diet, I don’t have a problem with the glycemic part, and it had zero laxative effects on me.
20 years later and it looks like they’re finally making some progress here, LOL.