Many people are giving up sugar and are looking for natural sweeteners. For example, stevia. But not everyone likes it and is suitable. What can be replaced with stevia? Pay attention to monk fruit. This fruit from Southeast Asia is praised for being 150-200 times sweeter than sugar. And lately, it seems to be present in almost every new packaged food product, from candy to bottled coffee and baked goods.
Content What can you replace stevia with: choose monk fruit? How much monk fruit can you consume? How to use monk fruit sweetener at home
WomanEL suggests finding out why it has become a trend and what is special about this alternative to sugar (and stevia).
What can you replace stevia with: choose monk fruit
Jessica Cording, MD, says she first saw monk fruit extract around 2017, around the time the Paleo diet became popular.
So why are people choosing monk fruit over all others now? One huge reason: taste. Some alternative sweeteners have a strong aftertaste, while monk fruit, by contrast, has a more neutral taste. “Many of our customers have a strong aversion to the taste and aftertaste of stevia. Monk fruit helps strike the right balance between taste and nutritional profile while remaining natural,” says health expert Maggie Luther.
Tero Isokauppila, founder of Four Sigmatic, says he was introduced to monaco fruit about 10 years ago when he was looking for a natural sweetener to balance out bitter mushroom extracts. “I’ve been using it in recipes for the last six years,” he says.
Other brands are hoping that monk fruit will help their customers avoid some of the negative side effects of other sweeteners. For example, Splenda can cause bloating and even have a laxative effect if consumed in excess, says Cording. Lauren Picasso, founder of Cure Hydration, says she chose monk fruit to sweeten her brand's recovery and hydration powders in part because artificial sweeteners (like sucralose and aspartame) can negatively impact gut health.
How much monk fruit can you eat?
Of course, monk fruit has its limitations. Cording adds that too much of any sweetener (sugar, monk fruit, or other) can make it harder for people to appreciate the natural sweetness in foods. And because they have no calories, sweeteners create a “healthy halo,” so you might eat more than you would if the product contained only sugar.
“The goal should be to reduce the amount of sweeteners you consume, whether it’s monk fruit or something else, and to encourage the natural sweetness of the foods we eat,” says Cording. “Choose the sweetener that gives you the most enjoyment in the least amount.”
How to use monk fruit sweetener at home
For beverages like your morning coffee or tea, monk fruit sweetener can easily be substituted for regular sweetener in a 1:1 ratio. In fact, it’s so sweet that you’ll often end up using less sugar, honey, or even stevia. The same goes for the pinch of sugar you add to your barbecue sauce or the half teaspoon needed to caramelize onions. Anywhere that sugar would be completely dissolved and used solely as a sweetener, it can be substituted just like any other sugar substitute.
When it comes to baking, opinions are divided online. Some bakers say it's a perfectly fine substitution, especially in meringue, where the sugar needs to be crystallized. Others say it makes their cake turn out a strange color. As with any substitute, especially in science-based baking, it's best to play around and do some trial and error with your recipe before committing to it.
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