What is nougat, and why is it in every candy bar?

[Omeedius]

I was shocked to see Professor Richard Hartel! He is my major advisor at UW Madison and teaches candy science. His office is like Willy Wonka's factory and he's really cool!

[rauha]

Just realized nougat is a completely different thing here in Europe. It's a sweet hazelnut paste. Never realized up till now.

[OriginalMasterChafa]

"We need to make the product cheaper. What is cheaper than corn syrup?"
"Um... Air?"
"Get this man a promotion."

[richiehoyt]

Love the way the prof gives that little grin at 1:56, as if to say, "None of this is making things any clearer for those of your viewers who don't have food science degrees, is it?!"

[masterstealth]

"What is Nougat?"
* Immediately gives answer alongside scientific expert and digs deeper without any fluff *
*-->Instantly subscribed*

[SmaeAwkward]

I have no idea why YouTube recommended this to me, but I'm glad they did, because I've been wondering this for a while.

[matthewsanders]

I like how you keep saying the word protein. It makes me feel like I’m being healthier with each snickers.

[lifewriter]

Nougat is is a family of confections made with sugar or honey, roasted nuts (almonds, walnuts, pistachios, hazelnuts, and macadamia nuts are common), whipped egg whites, and sometimes chopped candied fruit. The consistency of nougat is chewy, and it is used in a variety of candy bars and chocolates. The word nougat comes from Occitan nogat (pronounced [nuˈɣat, nuˈga]), which means 'nutted' or 'nutty'. Simple is that.

[gewgulkansuhckitt]

It's basically chocolate styrofoam.
Little known fact: After it's aged long enough, nougat turns into oldgat.

[Casemander]

Hey Adam, I just want to say it's really impressive how you've been able to incorporate a lot of your local and regional establishments into your videos. I would imagine it takes a little more legwork to find content that way, but I find your approach very refreshing.

[FingeringThings]

Nougats taste really good, so im guessing thats why

[ryansims]

Someone else already mentioned this, but the way that you structured this video is amazing. You start out with the exact and basic answer, then you dive deeper into the details in a very logical order and structure. It might not be the best for the youtube "algorithm" because people who don't care enough will leave early in the video when they get a good enough answer for their curiosity. Despite that, this format is great! Keep up the great work! very informative!

[keren]

Ah yes, the four elements: protein, sugar, water and air.

[trylleklovn]

I was initially confused by the title, since I thought everyone knew that nougat is made from hazelnuts. Turns out in Denmark, what we exclusively call nougat is internationally known as "wiener nougat".

[ameliakirahring]

In Denmark (and I think germany) when we say nougat, we are always referring to Wiener nougat, which is made with cocoa and hazelnuts. It is not airy and comes in a firmer block, a bit like butter

[Cooleatack]

It’s weird that this is considered nougat, but nougat as I grew up to know it, is a hard honey candy often with nuts added in. I was surprised to not hear from it in the video. They make the most delicious nougat in Sardinia, which is completely different from the nougat in candy bars

[claypunk]

I think a lot of europeans will make themselves heard on this one! There are even more kinds of nougat. I grew up in central europe where nougat is a dense, slightly crumbly paste made from hazelnuts. Wikipedia calls it "german nougat". Then there is the fancy "white nougat" which I assume western europeans would recognize as nougat (french/belgian people especially). American nougat is basically white nougat but cost-optimized and engineered to death/perfection. Then there's "brown nougat" which is more in the hard-candy territory and imho a pain to eat.
EDIT: My intention was not to attack Adam's video (which is great as always), or to suggest european nougat is somehow better. Just wanted to contribute to the discussion :)

[Hopeless_and_Forlorn]

My father was born in 1919. He and I were enjoying candy bars one day when he told me that in his youth, the Three Musketeers bar was actually constructed in three parts, joined by a chocolate covering. One part was chocolate nougat, one strawberry, and one vanilla, if I remember his description correctly. Our conversation took place around 1955, and at that time candy bars cost five cents, and ranged in weight from about 1 1/2 to a full 2 ounces. If I remember correctly, the larger size of Baby Ruth bar at that time was a dime and weighed four ounces.

[BastardWolf]

Duke Nougat: "It's time to kick ass and chew caramel; anditsallstuckinmygums".

[Frank-kqyd]

I like how inclusive this guy is. Like when he specifies "the American south" instead of just staying "the south". It really helps this foreigners who are on an American website listening to an American speak to know that he's talking about the American south and not the Yemeni south.

Very thoughtful!