Why does fruit retain its shape when heated in sugared water but break down when heated with just plain water?
Sugar – Cooking fruit with or without sugar solution
fruitsugar
Related Topic
- Fruit – Why do some mangoes ripen without changing flesh color
- Cookies – Breaking down fruit with sugar and water for cookies
- Sugar – Crystallization of sugar solution, and oddly crunchy candy with fudge-like texture after eating
- Sugar – Does dissolved sugar really help to extract fruit flavours
- Fruit – Why does cooked fruit seem to retain more heat than the other foods in the recipe
- Vegetables – Why does unpeeled fruit rot
Best Answer
It is a case of osmotic pressure. If you heat it in plain water, the sugars inside the cell want to cross the cell membrane and try to equalize their concentration inside and out. With sugar in the water, the osmotic pressure is already equal so they don't need to leave the fruit.