The Terracotta Hack That Keeps Your Brown Sugar Super Soft

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Whether you're stirring it into your morning coffee or whipping up a batch of homemade cinnamon rolls, opening your container of brown sugar only to find it petrified rock-solid is a bummer. Brown sugar always seems to find a way to harden into an impenetrable mound when home cooks have their backs turned. Inventive foodies have placed a slice of bread, a few marshmallows, or a paper towel inside the bag as a last-ditch softening method. However, for a more effective, reliable way to save your brown sugar, there's one affordable tool that belongs on your radar, and it's well worth the paltry initial investment.

Introducing: terracotta. This handy tool often comes as a small round disc, like these ones by Goodful ($8.99 for a two-pack on Amazon). Alternatively, a slightly larger teddy-bear shape (like this one by Fox Run brand) has become so popular that many home bakers colloquially refer to terracotta brown sugar savers as "brown sugar bears." Whichever shape you choose, these little tools are small but mighty — big enough to hold adequate moisture for effectively softening an entire batch of brown sugar, but small enough that they can be easily plunged deep into the container. The method behind the magic? Terracotta is naturally highly porous, making it an absorption superstar for soaking up and retaining the water your brown sugar needs. The terracotta gets submerged in water, patted dry, then that water slowly releases into the sugar for a velvety, like-new texture.

To do it, soak the terracotta for 10 to 20 minutes, pat it dry with a paper towel to remove any excess surface water, then pop it into your brown sugar container. The drying step is crucial to avoid mold growth. Over time, the moisture locked inside that porous terracotta will slowly release into the surrounding brown sugar, keeping it hydrated and supple. After three to six months (terracotta plays the long-game) once the disk has dried out, simply re-soak it for another 10 to 20 minutes and repeat the process as needed. 

Amazon product reviews of the brown sugar bear rave, "I live in a very dry climate, and I used to keep a slice of bread in the brown sugar container. Of course, there would be bread crumbs in the brown sugar, and I'd have to change [the] bread to keep the sugar soft. This little guy solved the problem. I've only soaked him twice in several months, and I'm not sure he really needed to be soaked the second time." Here at Tasting Table, we use brown sugar for everything from apple brown betties to brined pork chops – and happily, this tiny terracotta tool is a practical, reusable instrument for reducing food waste and saving money — the ultimate win-win, in our book. This method works best if your brown sugar is stored in a resealable airtight container rather than in its original packaging from the store.