| I think this is generally true, but I'm not sure how to explain pasta sauces since I've been paying more attention. Sugar content in pasta sauces is almost random. Varies from 3 to 10 grams per serving at least. It seems to vary more than almost any other premade item I buy. And yet, even though I still eat junk too often, and like some treacle, I would not sort sauces based on sugar content. I can't tell if there's no correlation or if it is literally reversed for my taste buds, but often the high sugar ones are the worst to me. Just a theory, but maybe the sugar enhances some flavors, like garlic, but masks others, like basil, rather than drawing them all out equally? I'm not sure how well sugar's complex affect on taste is understood by food scientists, let alone smaller or newer food brands. (What do the generic brands have, a couple chefs and a couple rounds of taste tests? No idea.) Maybe there are too many possible combinations of ingredients and market segments for producers to all agree on the proper role of sugar, and maybe they're mostly guessing. If that's true, then we could all probably stand much less added sugar than we/they realize. |