Sugar Cane Juice

Sugar Cane Juice from Bangkok, Thailand

I've had a lot of sugarcane in my lifetime, usually chewing the stalk to get the sweet juice out. This is tough on your jaw and quite a bit of work for a little juice. You can't eat the fibers of the plant, so you have to spit them out and that can get a little messy sometimes too. Nevertheless, it is still one of my favorite snacks and I will get it whenever I see some. It's seasonal in most parts of the world, so it makes it a special treat when it is in season.

Only last year I got to try juice from sugar cane that's been pressed through a juicer machine that looks like a pasta roller. They stick the chopped up peeled cane into this machine and crank the handle, so these stands end up with fresh sugar cane juice plus a huge pile of dry flat stalk pieces. This particular one I got in a market in Bangkok, Thailand. It's light greenish yellow, like yellow Gatorade. Smells and tastes like a very weak but very sweet apple juice, but a little grassy like lemongrass tea. It's not quite as sweet as the palm sugar juice, which reminded me more of turbinado sugar. This cane juice was probably made out of the green sugar cane, which is less sweet than the black sugar cane, but in my opinion tastes a bit better.

The verdict? If you like the taste of sugar cane juice and just want something quick go for the juice. Otherwise, chewing on the actual sugarcane is much more satisfying.