Sugar

To test for reducing sugars:

• Add a sample of the food you are testing to a test tube
• Add Benedict's solution (blue)
• Place in a water bath (around 80°C)
• After a few minutes, the solution will turn green and then red/orange
• A positive test gives the "brick red" colour and means there is sugar in the food
• If the test stays blue, you don't have any sugar or you have something special called a non-reducing sugar.

To test for a non-reducing sugar:

• First boil the test food with dilute hydrochloric acid for a few minutes
• Neutralise the solution by gently adding small amounts of solid sodium hydrogen carbonate until it stops fizzing
• Test as above

This video shows a test for Reducing Sugars