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lisal2 · Guest

I am looking for American translations of British ingredients. For example, many of my recipes call for various types of sugar - superfine, castor, etc.

jennifermb · Guest

Hello Lisal,

I am English and may be able to help with some of the translations, some of the more common ones are:

British US
Icing Sugar Confectioners Sugar

Castor Sugar I have never found an equivalent in the US but Castor
Sugar is simply very finely ground Granulated Sugar,
you can make this yourself by grinding Granulated in
a coffee grinder or blender.

Superfine I have not heard of this in England and I have been
baking for a long time!

Hope this helps!

Michi · Guest

Hi Lisel
Sorry for the delay in post. You've probably received the response you needed, but just in case, superfine sugar is also known as "bar sugar" because it is used by bartenders for some of the sweeter drinks like Tom Collins or daiquiris. It dissolves really quickly! You can find it in most big supermarket liquor sections in the US - I think Domino has it in their line.

Jennifermb's suggestion of grinding granulated sugar in a clean coffee grinder is terrific too. You'll get close to what you're looking for. I have a feeling that "superfine" is slightly past "castor" grinding time-wise.

I read a fair amount of cookbooks/magazines from the UK and am often at a loss for American equivalents.

Good luck,
Michi