Growing up, I have always looked at the expiration dates on everything... or so I have thought. While I would frequently check to see if my eggs have gone bad, whether my milk was still okay to drink, or whether it was still safe to eat the chicken I have bought two weeks ago; one thing that has never crossed my mind was if the sugar in my back cabinet was safe to use or expired. Ironically, sugar is 100% the substance I consumed the most as a child and probably now as well. After all, sugar is known for sneaking into even the "healthiest" products nowadays.
If you pay close attention to the package, you will realize that sugar does not have a expiration date ,but it does have a "best before" date. This means that you should technically eat the sugar before a certain date, but if store/treat it properly I can stay good for years.
So how do you keep you sugar "useable"? It's simple.
1. Keep away from moisture
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Sugar is a great water absorber, meaning that once it absorbs water it will harden.
2. Keep away from heat
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Not to sound too science-y, but extreme heat such as stoves and microwaves causes condensation, which will ultimately be absorbed by the sugar.
However, if you messed up either of these steps, fear not- You can easily un-harden the sugar with a electric mixer or other unique tricks online!
Don't be afraid of using "bad" sugar when baking. You can easily tell by the compaction (aka if there are large clumps stuck together). Using compacted sugar is not dangerous, but it sure can make you even another step away from being Buddy Valastro. Yes, duh, sugar does tremendously enhance the flavor of baked goods, but it also does so much more than that. It aerates the baked good and also softens the gluten overall differentiating professional bakers from basic bakers
So, nope you won't get poisoned by bad sugar, but you will for sure be lacking in gourmet baking skills!