Create allergy card
← Browse ingredients

Icing sugar

Icing sugar is finely powdered sugar used in icings, frostings, dusting, and some baked goods.

Icing sugar — illustrative ingredient image

About Icing sugar

Icing sugar is finely ground sugar, usually produced from refined crystalline sugar, for applications where a smooth powder is useful. It is used in icings, frostings, glazes, fillings, dusting, and some baked goods, where it dissolves or disperses more readily than ordinary granulated sugar.

The powder is white or off-white, dry, and soft, with a very fine texture. Some products contain a small amount of an anti-caking ingredient, while others are simply powdered sugar. These versions can behave differently when whisked into liquids, sifted over food, or measured by volume.

Icing sugar is sold as a loose dry powder, either plain or with an anti-caking ingredient or blended starch, depending on the product. Sifting loosens compacted powder; whisking it with liquid forms icings, frostings, glazes, or fillings. Dissolving and dispersing change its powdery texture, while dusting leaves it dry on the food surface.

Ingredient type
sweetener

FOLLOW IT TO THE PLATE

Where will you meet it?

Explore the dishes that use this ingredient and their country and cuisine connections.

Explore linked dishes

ON A MENU OR LABEL

Find local names and written forms to help recognise this ingredient.

See local names

Where icing sugar appears

6 linked foods

Find foods to recognise by country and type. Recipes and products vary; these are recorded ingredient connections.

Showing 1–6 of 6

Snacks

Desserts

Ingredient connections awaiting review · Coverage is still growing, including packaged snacks.

Name examples awaiting language review. Confirm the specific food or product.

Local names for icing sugar

Names and romanised forms to recognise on menus and labels.

English

Icing sugar

Available names only. Languages may be spoken in other countries; a name alone does not identify every ingredient in a dish.

Icing sugar nutrition & diet

Icing sugar nutritional value

Sugars, powdered

Per 100 g of the edible portion in the recorded food form.

Calories
389kcal
Protein
0.0g
Carbs
99.8g
Fat
0.0g

Per 100 g of the named reference food. Preparation, cultivar and product formulation can change these values; use the stated form when comparing.

Portions & preparation

Use icing sugar as finely powdered sugar, distinguishing plain powder from products containing starch, anti-caking agents, flavorings, or color. The relevant portion may be dusted, whisked into icing, or incorporated into dough, and the surrounding recipe often determines the practical serving context.

Compare the right form: Match the reference to finely powdered sugar in the exact product form, noting starch or other anti-caking additions and whether it is sifted or mixed.

Diet considerations

Icing sugar is plant-derived when it is simply powdered sugar, but commercial formulations may include starch or other ingredients. Compatibility changes in frosting or baked goods containing dairy, egg, gelatin, or cereal flours. Its carbohydrate pattern is strongly portion-dependent and rises with the amount used.

AI-authored reading notes · Awaiting editorial review. Measured values, where available, have a separate source above.

Dietary compatibility

  • Vegan
    Depends on the version
  • Vegetarian
    Depends on the version
  • Pescatarian
    Depends on the version
  • Keto
    Typically incompatible
  • Paleo
    Typically incompatible
  • Low-carb
    Depends on the version
  • Halal
    Not established
  • Kosher
    Not established
What these diet assessments mean
Vegan · Depends on the version
Check the refining process and processing aids for the particular producer.
Vegetarian · Depends on the version
Check the refining process and processing aids for the particular producer.
Pescatarian · Depends on the version
Check the refining process and processing aids for the particular producer.
Keto · Typically incompatible
A concentrated sugar ingredient; the amount used matters. No serving-level carbohydrate calculation is available.
Paleo · Typically incompatible
This profile falls outside the conventional paleo pattern used here (grains and pseudograins, legumes, dairy or refined sugar).
Low-carb · Depends on the version
A concentrated sugar ingredient; the amount used matters. No serving-level carbohydrate calculation is available.
Halal · Not established
Sourcing, processing and any applicable certification have not been verified. A food name alone does not establish halal status.
Kosher · Not established
Sourcing, processing and any applicable certification have not been verified. A food name alone does not establish kosher status.

For the plain ingredient · Awaiting review. Diet compatibility is not allergy suitability or halal/kosher certification. Keto and low-carb depend on the portion.

Reviewed ingredient entryIngredient reference · Preparations vary

AI-generated illustration for visual context. It does not identify a particular product or establish allergen content.

Sources & review

Nutrition reference: USDA FoodData Central — Sugars, powdered ↗. Values are scaled from 100 g of the recorded edible form. Individual portions have no assumed fixed weight.

Expanded overview, name examples and nutrition notes are database drafts awaiting editorial review. Numeric nutrition values, where shown, have their own source and food-form reference.

The ingredient description and dish connections come from the draft catalogue and may change after review.

Last recorded verification: .