Table Sugar: What It Is, What It Contains, and How It Is Used
Author: Ukrainian Psychological Hub · Published: September 29, 2026 · Editorial Policy
Table sugar is the familiar white crystalline sugar used in kitchens, baking, beverages, and at the table. Chemically, it is sucrose: a disaccharide built from one glucose unit and one fructose unit joined in a single molecule. The molecular formula of sucrose is C12H22O11, and refined table sugar is produced mainly from sugar cane or sugar beets. MedlinePlus identifies sucrose as common table sugar, while PubChem and the NIST Chemistry WebBook provide the chemical identity and formula.
That short definition answers the chemistry, but it does not explain why table sugar is so useful. In food, sucrose is more than a source of sweetness. Depending on the recipe, it can add bulk, influence tenderness and browning, help control texture, support fermentation, and contribute to preservation. In jam and jelly, for example, sugar participates in the product's flavor, gel formation, and preservation; in baked goods, changing the amount of sugar can change spread, tenderness, color, moisture, and structure.
Table sugar also sits at the intersection of chemistry, food technology, nutrition labeling, and psychology. The same sucrose can be described as table sugar, white sugar, granulated sugar, cane sugar, beet sugar, an added sugar, or a free sugar depending on what question is being asked. Those labels are not interchangeable in every context. They can also shape expectations: what people think will taste sweeter, seem more natural, feel more premium, or be healthier can be influenced by wording, packaging, color, price, and prior experience as well as by the sucrose itself.
What is table sugar?
In ordinary American English, table sugar usually means refined white granulated sugar intended for household use. Its principal chemical substance is sucrose. MedlinePlus lists sucrose as common table sugar and notes that household table sugar is made from sugar cane or sugar beets. OpenStax likewise describes ordinary table sugar as sucrose and explains that sucrose yields glucose and fructose when hydrolyzed.
The word sugar is broader than table sugar. Glucose, fructose, galactose, lactose, maltose, and sucrose are all sugars in biochemical or food-science contexts. Table sugar names one familiar product within that larger category. This distinction matters because statements about “sugar” can refer to a chemical family, a food ingredient, a Nutrition Facts category, or a sensory property. A precise answer starts by identifying which meaning is intended.
For everyday use, table sugar is typically dry, white, crystalline, free-flowing, and neutral enough in aroma and flavor that sweetness is its dominant sensory contribution. Crystal size can vary among products sold as granulated sugar, but crystal size does not change the identity of sucrose. It mainly changes handling, dissolution, surface area, and how the sugar behaves in a particular preparation.
What does table sugar contain?
Sucrose is one molecule made from glucose and fructose units
Sucrose is a disaccharide. “Di-” means that two monosaccharide units are joined together. In sucrose, those units are glucose and fructose. PubChem describes sucrose as a nonreducing disaccharide composed of glucose and fructose, and OpenStax explains that hydrolysis of sucrose produces one equivalent of glucose and one equivalent of fructose.
It is common to hear that table sugar is “50% glucose and 50% fructose.” That phrase can be useful shorthand, but it can also create the wrong picture. A crystal of table sugar is not a loose physical mixture of free glucose crystals and free fructose crystals. The glucose and fructose units are chemically bonded as sucrose. When the bond is hydrolyzed, such as during digestion or certain food-processing reactions, the resulting monosaccharides are released.
The chemical formula of table sugar is C12H22O11
The molecular formula of sucrose is C12H22O11. NIST lists sucrose with a molecular weight of about 342.30 g/mol, and PubChem identifies sucrose under CID 5988. These chemistry facts are independent of whether the sucrose was originally extracted from sugar cane or sugar beets.
The formula is useful for identifying the compound, but it does not tell you how a food will taste. Sweetness is a perceptual outcome that depends on concentration and on the food matrix around the sucrose. Aroma, texture, color, temperature, other tastes, and expectations can all alter the experienced sweetness of a food or drink even when the sucrose concentration is unchanged.
Is table sugar the same as sucrose, white sugar, and granulated sugar?
Table sugar and sucrose are closely aligned terms, but one is a household product name and the other is a chemical name. In normal food use, refined table sugar is sucrose. “White sugar” usually points to the same refined, pale product. “Granulated sugar” describes a physical form: dry sugar in visible crystals or granules. In a home kitchen, granulated sugar and table sugar often refer to the same package.
The distinction becomes useful when precision matters. Sucrose can also appear as powdered sugar, coarse sugar, liquid sugar, or as the dominant sugar in brown and raw-style products. Granulation describes form rather than a new molecule. Conversely, not every sweet granular product is necessarily sucrose: specialty sweeteners and sugar substitutes can also be sold as crystals or granules.
This article owns the definition of table sugar. Detailed questions about crystal size, texture, baking behavior, and substitution belong to the separate granulated-sugar topic in the Sugar Psychology & Sugar Knowledge network. That separation keeps “table sugar” from swallowing every neighboring sugar intent.
Where does table sugar come from?
Sugar cane and sugar beets are the main commercial sources
Commercial sucrose is produced mainly from sugar cane and sugar beets. A USDA Agricultural Research Service overview states that commercial sugar is manufactured worldwide from either sugarcane or sugar beets. The USDA Farm Service Agency glossary separately defines cane sugar, beet sugar, refined crystalline sugar, and sucrose for U.S. sugar programs.
The plants look very different: sugar cane stores large amounts of sucrose in its stalks, while sugar beets store sucrose in their roots. The industrial routes also differ, especially before purification. Yet once highly refined crystalline sucrose has been isolated, the sucrose molecule is the same chemical compound. Source words such as “cane” and “beet” therefore describe origin and processing history, not two different sucrose molecules.
How table sugar is made, in broad terms
At a high level, production separates sucrose from plant material, removes non-sugar components, concentrates the purified juice or syrup, crystallizes sucrose, separates crystals from the remaining liquid, and dries the crystals. Cane refining and beet processing use different equipment and intermediate steps, so a full manufacturing explanation is its own topic. For the definition of table sugar, the important endpoint is purified crystalline sucrose.
“Refined” is sometimes treated as if it were a psychological verdict rather than a processing description. In sugar manufacture, refining refers to operations that increase purity and separate sucrose crystals from colorants, minerals, molasses components, plant solids, and other material. Whether someone values minimal processing is a separate preference or nutrition question; the chemical meaning of refining does not itself determine a person's overall diet quality.
How is table sugar used?
Table sugar is used because it is sweet, predictable, widely available, easy to measure, water-soluble, and technologically useful. MedlinePlus lists functions of sugars that include providing sweet flavor, supporting freshness and food quality, acting as a preservative in jams and jellies, supporting fermentation, and adding bulk or body to products such as ice cream and carbonated beverages.
Sweetening foods and drinks
The most obvious use is sweetening. Table sugar is dissolved in coffee, tea, lemonade, sauces, cereals, desserts, and many prepared foods. The amount needed depends on the target sweetness, serving size, acidity, bitterness, aroma, temperature, and other ingredients. A teaspoon added to hot tea and the same mass dispersed through a thick, cold dessert do not create identical sensory experiences.
Baking: sweetness is only one job
In baking, removing sugar can change the product even if another ingredient restores some sweetness. Illinois Extension notes that sugar adds sweetness, contributes to tender texture, and allows browning in baked goods. Alabama Cooperative Extension describes additional recipe-dependent effects, including increased browning, tenderness, spread in cookies, moisture and fine texture in cakes, and a lower freezing point in ice cream.
This is why replacing table sugar gram-for-gram with a high-intensity sweetener can fail as a baking substitution. A substance that produces sweetness at a tiny dose may not reproduce sucrose's bulk, water interactions, crystal behavior, tenderness, browning, aeration, or freezing effects. Substitution is a food-engineering problem as well as a sweetness problem.
Jams, jellies, and preservation
In traditional jams and jellies, sugar has a structural and preservation role. The National Center for Home Food Preservation states that sugar serves as a preserving agent, contributes flavor, and aids in gelling; it also warns that traditional tested recipes should not simply have their sugar reduced because the change can interfere with gel formation and spoilage control.
That warning illustrates a general rule: “less sugar” is not always a simple sensory edit. In some foods, sugar is part of the physical system that makes the recipe work. When preservation safety is involved, tested recipes and validated processing methods matter more than intuitive substitution.
Fermentation, confectionery, frozen desserts, and texture
Sucrose is also useful in yeast doughs, candies, syrups, frostings, frozen desserts, and confections. During processing, sucrose may dissolve, recrystallize, hydrolyze into glucose and fructose, or undergo heat-driven changes. Candy texture can depend on whether crystallization is encouraged or controlled. In frozen desserts, dissolved sugar changes the freezing behavior of water, influencing softness and scoopability. These are functional consequences of concentration and food structure, not simply “sweet taste.”
Why does table sugar taste sweet?
Sucrose activates the human sweet-taste system, but the experience called sweetness is not a direct meter that reports grams of sucrose. It is a perception created from chemical stimulation plus the wider sensory and cognitive context. This distinction explains why two foods with comparable sugar content can taste very different, and why the same drink can taste sweeter after a recipe, aroma, or temperature change.
A peer-reviewed 2019 review of sweetness perception summarizes evidence that food-intrinsic factors such as color, aroma, and texture, as well as food-extrinsic factors such as packaging, receptacles, and the surrounding environment, can influence sweetness perception and liking. The review's relevance is not that packaging changes sucrose molecules. It changes the information the brain integrates while constructing the flavor experience.
Aroma can change perceived sweetness without adding sugar
Certain aromas are learned as companions to sweet foods. When an aroma strongly associated with sweetness is added to a product, it can shift the experienced flavor toward sweetness even when the sucrose amount is unchanged. The size and direction of the effect depend on the product, the aroma, prior learning, and experimental conditions, which is why aroma should not be treated as a universal substitute for sugar.
Color and texture can alter the sensory context
Color provides predictive information before a food reaches the mouth. Texture changes how flavor compounds and tastants are released and how the product is experienced. The sweetness-perception literature reviewed by Wang and colleagues shows that these cross-sensory effects are real but context-dependent. A darker color does not have one universal sweetness meaning across every food; associations are learned within product categories and cultures.
Temperature changes flavor experience
Temperature affects taste intensity, aroma release, viscosity, and the rate at which sugar dissolves. A warm beverage, a chilled drink, and frozen dessert can therefore require different formulations to produce a similar experienced sweetness. This does not mean temperature changes the identity of sucrose. It changes the conditions under which sucrose and the rest of the product are perceived.
Expectation: why the same sugar can be judged differently
The psychology of table sugar becomes especially visible when the chemistry stays constant while the description changes. A review by Okamoto and Dan found that extrinsic information such as package design, brand, and price can bias taste and flavor perception, with expectation serving as a major psychological mediator. In other words, people do not approach a spoonful, drink, or dessert as a blank sensory instrument; they bring predictions about what it should taste like.
Another review, by Skaczkowski and colleagues, examined packaging, branding, and labeling effects on food and drink experience. Across the literature they reviewed, extrinsic information frequently influenced taste or hedonic judgments. This supports a practical distinction: the sucrose concentration of a product is a chemical fact, while perceived sweetness, quality, indulgence, or healthfulness can be influenced by presentation and expectation.
Words such as cane, raw, natural, and organic can carry extra meaning
Consumers often treat ingredient labels as stories about origin and quality. “Cane sugar,” “raw sugar,” “organic sugar,” and “natural sweetener” can evoke different expectations about processing, flavor, purity, environmental values, or health even before tasting. Those expectations may matter to purchasing decisions, but they should not be used as shortcuts for chemistry. A product can sound more natural and still supply sucrose as its main sugar.
The useful question is therefore two-part: what is the product chemically, and what meaning does the label add psychologically? Keeping those levels separate makes comparisons clearer. Chemical composition answers what is present. Sensory testing answers what is perceived. Consumer research answers how labels, brands, prices, and beliefs influence evaluation.
Table sugar on U.S. Nutrition Facts labels
Total Sugars and Added Sugars are different label concepts
Under current U.S. labeling guidance, Total Sugars includes naturally occurring sugars plus any added sugars in the food. Added Sugars is a narrower regulatory category. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration states that added sugars include sugars added during processing, such as sucrose or dextrose, and also foods packaged as sweeteners, such as table sugar, as well as sugars from syrups, honey, and certain concentrated juices.
That means table sugar does not stop being “added sugar” merely because the package contains only sugar. The FDA specifically addresses single-ingredient sugars and syrups. Their labels use a special presentation so consumers are not given the misleading impression that another sugar ingredient was added to the sugar itself, while still showing how the serving contributes to the Daily Value for added sugars.
As of September 2026, the FDA page on Added Sugars lists a Daily Value of 50 grams of added sugars for a 2,000-calorie diet. This is a labeling reference value, not a personalized prescription. Individual energy needs, dietary patterns, medical conditions, and clinical advice can differ.
Is table sugar a free sugar? WHO uses a broader public-health definition
“Added sugar” and “free sugar” overlap, but they are not identical regulatory terms. The World Health Organization defines free sugars as monosaccharides and disaccharides added to foods or beverages by a manufacturer, cook, or consumer, plus sugars naturally present in honey, syrups, fruit juices, and fruit-juice concentrates. Table sugar added to food or drink therefore falls within the WHO free-sugars concept.
WHO currently advises limiting free sugars to less than 10% of total daily energy intake and notes that reducing them to 5% or less may provide additional health benefits. The FDA's Added Sugars category and WHO's free-sugars category serve related public-health purposes but are constructed differently. A U.S. Nutrition Facts label should be interpreted using FDA definitions; a discussion of WHO guidance should use the WHO definition of free sugars.
Table sugar compared with nearby sugar terms
Table sugar vs glucose
Table sugar is not glucose. Glucose is a monosaccharide. Sucrose is a disaccharide containing a glucose unit bonded to a fructose unit. When sucrose is hydrolyzed, glucose and fructose are released. Confusing the ingredient table sugar with the molecule glucose collapses two different levels of chemistry.
Table sugar vs fructose
Table sugar is not pure fructose either. Fructose is one of the two monosaccharide units in sucrose. Pure fructose and sucrose differ in chemical structure and sensory properties. The fact that sucrose contains a fructose unit does not make a bag of table sugar the same substance as a bag of crystalline fructose.
Table sugar vs brown sugar
Brown sugar is commonly a sucrose-rich product that contains molasses or molasses-derived components, which change color, aroma, moisture, and flavor. MedlinePlus notes that brown sugar can be made from sugar crystals associated with molasses syrup or by adding molasses back to white granulated sugar. The sensory difference therefore comes largely from the molasses fraction and physical properties, not from replacing sucrose with an entirely different core sugar molecule.
Table sugar vs raw sugar
Raw-style sugars are less refined and typically retain more color and molasses-associated flavor than white table sugar. They remain sucrose-dominant sweeteners. “Raw” is a processing description, and the exact commercial meaning can depend on the product and jurisdiction. It should not be translated automatically into “healthier” or “chemically unrelated to white sugar.”
Table sugar vs powdered sugar
Powdered sugar, also called confectioners' sugar, is finely ground sucrose and often includes a small amount of anti-caking starch in commercial products. Its tiny particles dissolve and disperse differently from regular granulated table sugar, making it useful in frostings, dusting, and confectionery. The change in particle size creates different behavior even though sucrose remains the main sugar.
Table sugar vs high-fructose corn syrup
High-fructose corn syrup is a liquid corn-derived sweetener containing free glucose and fructose in specified proportions. Table sugar is crystalline sucrose in which glucose and fructose are bonded in one molecule before hydrolysis. Treating them as the same ingredient obscures that chemical and physical difference; treating them as completely unrelated sweeteners obscures the fact that both ultimately provide glucose and fructose units.
Table sugar vs sugar substitutes
Sugar substitutes are a separate category, and the class labels should not be collapsed. Artificial sweeteners such as aspartame, sucralose, and saccharin are one subset of non-sugar sweeteners. Stevia-derived and monk-fruit sweeteners are also non-sugar sweeteners but are usually marketed as plant-derived rather than artificial. Sugar alcohols such as erythritol, xylitol, and sorbitol are a different group again. Their sweetness, energy value, digestion, aftertaste, baking performance, and safety evidence differ by substance, so evidence about one sweetener should not be generalized automatically to the entire category.
How much energy is in table sugar?
MedlinePlus states that table sugar provides about 16 calories per 4 grams, roughly the amount in a level teaspoon. That number is useful for orientation, but household teaspoons are not laboratory instruments: packing, crystal size, spoon shape, and leveling can change the mass. For exact recipe or nutrition calculations, weighing sugar in grams is more reliable than assuming every spoonful is identical. MedlinePlus is also explicit that table sugar contributes calories without being a meaningful source of vitamins, minerals, protein, or fiber.
This article keeps the boundary at dietary sugar, food use, labeling, and perception. Blood-glucose readings, fasting-glucose targets, A1C, hyperglycemia, hypoglycemia, continuous glucose monitoring, and individualized diabetes treatment are clinical topics. They should not be inferred from a definition of table sugar or from a single serving of a food.
Does table sugar have a unique health status?
The most defensible health framing is contextual. Table sugar is a source of sucrose and, when used as a sweetener, contributes to added or free sugar intake. Public-health guidance focuses on the amount and pattern of added or free sugars in the diet rather than declaring that the chemical existence of sucrose turns a food into a diagnosis. The FDA and WHO use intake guidance and labeling categories to help people evaluate overall dietary exposure.
A tablespoon of table sugar, the sucrose naturally present inside a fruit or vegetable, and sugar added to a soft drink can involve the same or related sugar molecules while appearing in very different food matrices and eating patterns. This is why chemistry alone does not answer every nutrition question, and why nutrition labels distinguish total sugars from added sugars rather than treating all sugar-containing foods as equivalent.
Claims such as “sugar causes inflammation,” “sugar causes brain fog,” “sugar is addictive,” or “sugar causes hyperactivity” each require their own evidence review. They involve dose, dietary pattern, population, outcome definition, confounding, and often contested causal interpretation. The definition of table sugar provides the chemical starting point; it does not settle those separate clinical or behavioral questions.
Common misconceptions about table sugar
“Table sugar is pure glucose”
No. Table sugar is sucrose. Glucose is one component unit of sucrose, paired with fructose in the sucrose molecule. A glucose product and a sucrose product are chemically different ingredients.
“Table sugar is a physical 50/50 mix of glucose and fructose”
Not before hydrolysis. Sucrose contains one glucose unit and one fructose unit bonded together. Describing it as “50/50” is shorthand for composition, not a literal picture of free glucose and free fructose molecules sitting separately in the crystal.
“Cane table sugar and beet table sugar are different sugars”
Their agricultural origin differs, but highly refined table sugar from either source is sucrose. Source can matter for farming, processing, traceability, branding, and consumer preference. It does not create a new molecular formula for sucrose.
“If it is sold as a natural sweetener, it is not added sugar”
In U.S. labeling, the FDA category is based on how the sugar enters the food and on specific regulatory definitions, not on whether marketing language calls the ingredient natural. Table sugar packaged as a sweetener is explicitly included in the FDA's Added Sugars framework.
“Sweeter taste tells you exactly how many grams of sugar are present”
No. Sugar concentration is important, but perceived sweetness also depends on the rest of the product and on perception. Aroma, temperature, texture, color, acids, bitterness, serving context, and expectation can alter sweetness judgments. A sensory comparison cannot replace a measured ingredient amount or a Nutrition Facts label.
“Sugar only adds sweetness, so any sweetener is a one-to-one replacement”
No. Table sugar can also provide mass, affect water availability, change browning and tenderness, influence freezing, support fermentation, and contribute to preservation or gel structure. A substitute that matches sweetness may still produce a different cookie, jam, syrup, or frozen dessert.
Why people can prefer different amounts of table sugar
Sweetness preference varies across people and situations. Biology contributes to sweet-taste perception, but preference is also learned. Repeated exposure, family food patterns, cultural cuisine, beverage habits, expectations, and the sensory context of the food all matter. A person accustomed to unsweetened tea may experience a moderately sweet tea as intense; someone accustomed to a sweeter formulation may experience the same drink as only mildly sweet.
The important distinction is between detection, perception, liking, craving, and habit. Detecting sweetness is a sensory process. Rating a food as pleasantly sweet is a preference judgment. Wanting a familiar dessert in a particular context can involve learning and cues. A repeated behavior can become habitual. None of those observations, by itself, establishes a substance-use disorder or an eating disorder.
This is where the Sugar Psychology & Sugar Knowledge approach adds value without replacing the mainstream answer. The chemistry tells us that table sugar is sucrose. Food science tells us what sucrose does in recipes. Sensory psychology explains why identical chemistry can be experienced differently. Consumer psychology explains why origin words, packages, brands, and health framing can alter expectations. These levels complement one another when they remain clearly distinguished.
Practical handling and storage
Granulated table sugar is shelf-stable when kept dry. Utah State University Extension advises storing sugar in an airtight container away from moisture and insects and notes that granulated sugar does not become rancid like fats do. Moisture can cause clumping, and contamination or odors can reduce quality even when the sucrose itself remains chemically stable.
For ordinary cooking, measuring by volume is convenient. For baking, confectionery, or recipe development, weighing in grams improves repeatability. Dissolving sugar is faster when crystals have more contact with the liquid and when conditions favor dissolution, but the final concentration—not the disappearance of visible crystals—determines how much sucrose is present.
For preservation, use tested methods rather than improvising sugar reductions in recipes whose safety and gel structure depend on a validated formulation. The National Center for Home Food Preservation provides tested guidance for jams, jellies, and reduced-sugar alternatives.
A precise way to think about table sugar
A useful definition keeps four questions separate. First, identity: table sugar is refined crystalline sucrose. Second, composition: sucrose is a disaccharide made from glucose and fructose units, with formula C12H22O11. Third, function: table sugar provides sweetness and can also affect structure, texture, browning, freezing, fermentation, and preservation. Fourth, perception: the experienced sweetness and meaning of a sugar-containing food are shaped by the entire sensory and cognitive context.
That framework prevents several common errors at once. It avoids calling every sugar-containing food “table sugar.” It avoids treating glucose, fructose, sucrose, added sugar, and free sugar as synonyms. It avoids turning a regulatory label into a chemical category. And it avoids assuming that a person's sensory judgment of sweetness is a direct measurement of the product's sugar mass.
Frequently asked questions
What is table sugar?
Table sugar is the common household crystalline sweetener whose principal chemical substance is sucrose. It is usually sold as refined white granulated sugar and is produced mainly from sugar cane or sugar beets.
Is table sugar sucrose?
Yes. In ordinary food use, table sugar is sucrose. Sucrose is a disaccharide made from one glucose unit and one fructose unit.
What is the chemical formula of table sugar?
The molecular formula of sucrose is C12H22O11. NIST lists its molecular weight at about 342.30 g/mol.
Is table sugar glucose?
No. Glucose is a monosaccharide. Table sugar is sucrose, a disaccharide containing glucose and fructose units bonded together.
Is table sugar the same as granulated sugar?
In everyday household use, the terms often refer to the same white crystalline product. More precisely, “table sugar” names the familiar sucrose sweetener, while “granulated” describes its crystal form. Granulated-sugar questions about crystal size, texture, and substitution are a separate intent.
Is table sugar made from sugar cane or sugar beets?
Both. Commercial table sugar can be produced from sugar cane or sugar beets. Once highly refined, the main chemical substance in either product is sucrose.
What is table sugar used for?
It is used to sweeten foods and drinks and to perform recipe functions such as adding bulk, influencing tenderness and browning, changing freezing behavior, supporting fermentation, and contributing to the gel structure and preservation of traditional jams and jellies.
How many calories are in a teaspoon of table sugar?
MedlinePlus lists about 16 calories per 4 grams, roughly one level teaspoon of table sugar. Household spoon measurements vary, so grams are more precise for exact calculations. Source: MedlinePlus.
Does table sugar count as Added Sugars on a U.S. label?
Yes. The FDA explicitly includes foods packaged as sweeteners, such as table sugar, in the Added Sugars framework. Single-ingredient sugar packages have special labeling rules so the label does not imply that extra sugar was added to the sugar itself. Source: FDA.
Does table sugar count as free sugar under WHO guidance?
When sucrose is added to foods or beverages by a manufacturer, cook, or consumer, it falls within the WHO definition of free sugars. WHO also includes sugars naturally present in honey, syrups, fruit juices, and fruit-juice concentrates in that category. Source: WHO.
Is brown sugar a completely different sugar from table sugar?
No. Brown sugar is generally sucrose-rich and differs mainly through molasses content and the resulting color, aroma, moisture, and flavor. The full brown-sugar comparison is a separate topic because product types and processing details matter.
Can packaging or labeling change how sweet table sugar tastes?
Packaging cannot change the sucrose molecule, but labels, branding, price, color, aroma, and other contextual cues can change expectations and, in some settings, alter taste and flavor judgments. Reviews of sensory and consumer research support these expectation effects. Wang et al. (2019); Okamoto & Dan (2013); Skaczkowski et al. (2016).
For the standard dry crystal form most American recipes mean by regular sugar, see Granulated Sugar: What It Is, Uses, Texture, and Substitutes.
Related Articles
For a practical example of table sugar used in a beverage where concentration, temperature, regional habit, and sensory expectation all matter, see Sweet Tea: What It Is, Sugar, Caffeine, Culture, and Taste.
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