What North Americans call molasses, the British call treacle, a word that derives ultimately from a Greek word meaning fierce or poisonous beast. This Greek word\u2014therion\u2014gave rise to an adjective, theriakos, a form of which was used by the ancient Greeks in the phrase antidotos theriake, meaning antidote for poisonous beasts. From this phrase, the ancient Romans derived their name for such life-saving antidotes, theriaca, which made its way through Old French and appeared in English in the mid fourteenth century as treacle. Antidote remained the only meaning of treacle until the late seventeenth century when it was made the name of a syrup produced from unrefined sugar, a syrup whose sweetness made it a kind of “antidote” for bitter substances. Other words that derive from the same source as treacle include fierce and feral, both of which have stayed closer to the wild beast sense of their Greek ancestor.<\/p>\n
In British gastronomy, there exists a distinctive appellation for the viscous liquid, akin to molasses, that remains following the processing of sugar cane. This dark-hued substance is known as black treacle, characterized by a higher presence of innocuous impurities compared to its lighter counterpart known as golden syrup. Black treacle possesses a nuanced flavor profile, encompassing a slightly bitter undertone amidst its composition.<\/p>\n
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What North Americans call molasses, the British call treacle, a word that derives ultimately from a Greek word meaning fierce or poisonous beast. This Greek word\u2014therion\u2014gave rise to an adjective, theriakos, a form of which was used by the ancient Greeks in the phrase antidotos theriake, meaning antidote for poisonous beasts. From this phrase, the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-41274","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-t"],"yoast_head":"\n