How to boil down a small amount of sap?

Chucknbob · #1 02/15/14, 07:15 AM

If this needs to be in the maple syrup sticky (no pun intended) feel free to move it. It just seems like it's for the big boys, not the hobby guys like me.

I've got two trees tapped in my backyard. I've been trying to decide how best to boil it down. I have a turkey fryer with a 10 gallon pot, but I'm guessing the amount of propane it would take would make this option more expensive than its worth. Does anyone else do a small batch, and how do you handle the boil?

Dixie Bee Acres · #2 02/15/14, 08:03 AM

Well, it can be done with a turkey fryer, but yes, very costly.

I tapped my trees early and going into this spell of sub freezing temps, I had almost 6 gallons of SAP in the fridge, so I simmered it all down to 1 gallon of concentrate and put it in my freezer, I will thaw it when the sap starts flowing again and I have enough for a boil.

To simmer it down, I used my 18 quart electric toaster. Every time it would start to get low, I would add more sap to it.

Maybe you could concentrate your sap that way, then finishe it on the turkey fryer.

Forerunner · #3 02/15/14, 08:14 AM

If you can come up with one of those stainless restaurant trays that they keep hot food in....6 inches deep, by 11x22 or thereabouts, you can use two burners at once and reduce a pretty good amount of sap.

Surface area exposed to flame, and surface area from which vapor can escape are the key. Think wide, not deep......

1shotwade · #4 02/15/14, 08:50 AM

I haven't read the "sticky" but I've made a lot of syrup.To start with stainless is not a good conductor of heat. Porcelain is a better choice.Stay away from other metals that tend to add an off flavor to the end product.Most people use stainless,but then again most people boil down outside using wood for a heat source.It doesn't take much to put down a couple cinder blocks to hold a pan up and fire in between .
Sap has sugars in it and sugars do not boil at the same temp as water.Your batch is done when your boil reaches 217.1 degrees. That is the stability point up to 217.5 Most people use hydrometers now instead of temp gauges. Sorry I don't know the specific gravity you are shooting for.
In the old days sap was left out side to freeze. The freezing temp is also lower than water due to the sugars.Any ice forming on the sap can be thrown away, lessening the amount of sap to be boiled. Again, sap with sugar is also heavier than water so will stay in the lower part of the vessel.
Remember that the rule of thumb is 40-1 so if you boil down 40 gal you need to start paying attention when you get close to that 1 gal mark.Finnish it out with lower,controlled heat at this point. Most small batcher will remove it from the wood fire and finish on the kitchen stove.
Don't plan to store this very long if you do not have the equipment to insure the boil is complete.If you boil too much it will turn to sugar and not enough will mold on the top.(again,the top having less sugars in itafter cooling and separating by weight)
Just play with it,enjoy it,have fun,learn and eat well!

Wade

Dixie Bee Acres · #5 02/15/14, 08:54 AM

Wade, you referenced 217 degrees, I always thought it was 219 degrees.
Is either one correct?

Forerunner · #6 02/15/14, 09:27 AM

7 degrees above the boiling point of water at your altitude above sea level.

For us, here, 219 it is.

Porcelain to boil off ?

Please expound upon that, Wade.

I use steel pans outside, and stainless works great for finishing and for smaller operations.

But I'd like to see your porcelain boiling vat, if you've pictures available.

free-2-b-me · #7 02/15/14, 10:04 AM

Last year I froze the sap and concentrated it down . I then boiled it down in my electric turkey fryer on the back porch . I ended up with a gallon of grade A syrup . Truth be told I like grade B better ! It was a fun experiment .

1shotwade · #8 02/15/14, 11:12 AM

OK you guys! Senior moment there! 219 is correct. Sorry!
As for the porcelain, I just use a boiling bath caner.The whole idea is to use something that will not transefe taste from the metal to the product and SS and porcelain are the only 2 I know of!

Wade

cc-rider · #9 02/15/14, 11:41 AM

I used a SS catering pan (bought at GFS) that is the same size as my propane grill. Gave it a lot of surface area. Still took a lot of propane, though!

Put the finished syrup in a mason jar in the fridge and the syrup molded before I used it.

Forerunner · #10 02/15/14, 11:58 AM

Mold on top of your finished syrup is not a problem. Just skim it off.

Mold can be an indication of not reducing the sap to the right sugar content, but all syrup uncanned will eventually mold, whether on the shelf or in the fridge.

If you make small amounts of syrup, can the stuff in half pints. That way you won't have a bigger container sitting open and unused for so long a period of time.

When in doubt as to how soon you'll use it, syrup can always be reheated to 180F and re-canned.

1shotwade · #11 02/15/14, 01:52 PM

I agree 100%! The other option is to reduce it down to the point it starts to thicken up (about like sorghum) and put it in a mold and into a dehydrator at 160* and turn it into sugar.

Wade

Chucknbob · #12 02/15/14, 04:23 PM

Would one of those big disposable aluminum pans that people bake turkeys in work?

Also, I just realized I have an old porcelain enameled cast iron bathtub. It's too big for what I'm making, but if someone wants it for a sugar vat, it's in southwest ohio and it's free!

Forerunner · #13 02/15/14, 04:53 PM

Never use aluminum.

The stuff is porous..... holds nasty stuff in the pores...... and that's it's best cooking characteristic.

sugarspinner · #14 02/15/14, 08:29 PM

Back to the comments about 219 degrees. Actually, 7.5 degrees above the boiling point THAT DAY is necessary for a good finish. The boiling point varies according to the barometric pressure, so it will go up or down with changes in the weather. Check it by putting a candy thermometer in boiling water before using it for cooking sap.

Also, I believe it was Forerunner who said think wide, not deep, for a cooking pan. Yes, yes, yes. The more surface for steam to escape, the quicker it will boil down and the quicker it boils down, the better the flavor.

No, don't use the disposable pans, like turkey roasters. They're not sturdy enough. Those shallow stainless steam table pans are good. Oh, if you decide to do this in the house, be aware that wallpaper does steam off!

gweny · #15 02/15/14, 09:56 PM

I tap only 2 trees also. This is my second year at it. Last year I had success with my big crock pot set at 220F. This year I got an induction hot plate that I'm gunna try.