Restaurant Depot did not have Dominos 10X Powdered sugar (and haven't for a while), they had some other brand instead. I purchased that. Turns out this mess is nowhere near 10X, it's grainy as the Sahara and completely useless to my existence. I tried making one batch of fondant, and what I have is a lump of something with visible sugar granules. No stretch. I don't use PS in my BC. Other than French Macarons (not even sure how the grainy-ness will affect these), I can't imagine what else I can do with all this sugar.

Sifting won't fix this cos the problem is that the sugar was not adequately ground up so it's more like 1.5X than 10X.

I have a mind to just dump this mess in the trash but before I do, any suggestions? Will grainy PS mess up French Macarons? Doing a test batch is not an option cos 1. Almond flour is too expensive for me to start testing out stuff or wasting any more time along with the wasted money and 2. I'm too pissed to even look at that nonsense.

*Breathe* UGH!!!!!!!!

ATry putting it in the blender or food processor to make it more powdery than crystally.

AHave you contacted RD and asked for a refund or exchange? If a product is labeled as 10x PS and does not live up to that label that's a quality issue and RD will want to know about it.

Thanks tykesmommy. I considered that. But honestly I think I'd get mad every time I had to do that. It's 50lbs of additional work and time wasted. I try to be as time-efficient as possible, caking is labor intensive as it is. Having to process multiple batches in the food processor every time I need to make fondant or gum paste is just not a way to maintain my sanity. Plus then I run the risk of inconsistent results.

I'll be heading out to a different store to see if they have the Dominos 10X 50lb bag. So I just need to figure out a way to use this other 50 lbs. I need a way to use this as is. 

AGood luck!! I hope you get a refund!! I'd be quite upset too!

Thank you :-)

Ah, you must have purchased the Mexican sugar (I can't think of the brand of it right now but it starts with an "A").

I had the same problem a few weeks ago.  I tried processing it in my FP but it did absolutely no good. Whatever crystalline substance is in that sugar does NOT dissolve.

My RD manager offered to exchange it for a bag of Domino's 10x.   He essentially told me I shouldn't really trust any products out of Mexico.

Lesson learned!

Yep, the brand is Alymaq. SMH. What I don't get is why they would stock a product they don't trust to be consistent with its packaging.

You need superfine sugar or powdered pure sugar for macarons. Don't waste your time with that crapola.

AActually, the XXs do not at all denote how many times the sugar is ground. It's the specification of how fine the granules are (the size of the grains). I've seen everything from 4X till 14X. Try using the sugar in place of your regular granulated sugar and see how it performs. Use an equal weight, instead of volume, as confectioner's sugar weighs less per cup than granulated or superfine sugar. Check to see if there is any starch in the sugar, as you might need to make adjustments in your recipes to compensate for that.

AGlad it worked out. I'm sure they've probably had the same complaint several times already.

I'm too late to help you..........but for the future ...........here's the deal as I understand it....... The 10X or 14X or whateverX: the X refers to the amount of starch added to the ground sugar. In fact, the sugar that is lumpy is actually has more real sugar in it then brands that are super fine and smooth. They have to add starch to powdered sugar to make it smooth, so it doesn't clump into lumps of sugar as it naturally wants to do. The starch is a cheap additive just to prevent the lumps! It serves no other purpose and it you taste test various brands of powdered sugar you can begin to taste and feel the differences in the amount of starch each has. It funny because the name brand powdered sugar that comes in 2lb bags has the most starch in it and we pay more for it even though it contains less sugar...........it's super smooth and non-clumping.........but it tastes more heavily of starch instead of pure sweet sugar.

That's why you can use xxxsugar dusted under your fondant to roll it out. If it didn't contain some starch, you'd have big clumps on the bottom as it trys to absorb into the fondant.

I sift all my powdered sugar and it typical to have some whole sugar grains that don't go through the strainer. Too many does become a pain, but it's just large pieces of sugar like table sugar. Technically you can grind it further in a food processor and you could add additional corn starch if it's clumping too much.

I thought Domino's 10-X PS was only sold in 1lb boxes, 2-lb bags, and 4-lb bags. I've been having the hardest time finding the case of 4-lb bags lately so i've been buying the case of 1lb boxes at restaurant depot lately.  I hate opening all those little boxes, but it beats going to the grocery store and waiting for 20 minutes for them to check the stock to see if they have more than what's on the shelf in 2-lb bags. 

I wish there was a more reliable brand of 10-X PS that came in larger sizes. 

Thanks Stitches.

Update 2: When I went to the store, they only had Domino's 6X in the 50lb bag. The manager offered to let me try out the 6X sugar while he tried to locate a 10X bag for me. He said I could bring it back if it didn't work. The 6X is way lumpier than any 10X PS I've used, so as Stitches described, it may have less starch than 10X.

I sifted it, and made a batch of MFF which turned out great! 

Funny enough, he had called me while I was working to let me know he found some Domino 10X bags in the store. 

I decided to stick with the 6X since it worked out fine (and I was in no mood to heave 45.9 lbs of sugar back to the store). I ended up using 3oz less than I used on a full batch of MFF I made with 10X. We'll see with subsequent uses if that was a fluke or if indeed I would need less 6X sugar compared to 10X.

So @tdovewings, Domino's 10X PS does come in 50lb bags.

Stitches:

The "X" designation has nothing to do with the cornstarch added to the product.  From the Domino's website:

Q.  What is the difference between Domino® 4X and 10X Confectioners Sugar?
A.  The "X" designations are derived from the mesh sizes of the screens used to separate powdered sugar into various sizes. Thus, 4X would have a larger particle size, whereas 10X would have a smaller particle size.

AThanks Cakepro - it recaps what I wrote in an earlier post. Starch is added to very finely ground sugars as a means of reducing clumping.

There seemd to be many misconceptions about what the numbers/Xs mean - these need to be debunked.

Besides, if the myth about the numbers/Xs actually was true (which it is not), there wouldn't be 10X and 14X sugars with no added starch.

Glad to know that, now the hunt is on for 50lb bags of Domino's 10X. 

A"The hunt is now on..." that sounds so funny! I'm envisioning groups of drunken bakers, stalking through the store in ugly camoflage oufits (with hunter's orange redneck caps).

It figures.........I repeated what I was told by my Dawn sales rep.. Sorry!

It's good to know the facts now!

I should research and figure out what she was trying to tell me about varying amounts of starch...

LOL Stitches...my Dawn rep loves to talk and some of the things he says just make me smile.  The last time he was here, we got into a discussion about the production of European-style butter from grass-fed cows (which I like to use, but he wants to sell me Borden butter) and he was trying to tell me...well, I can't even recap what he was trying to tell me because it was a little too technical.  Something about how the difference is just how the fat molecules bond to some other molecules during the processing...I dunno.  I was like, look dude...just taste the two and then you'll understand.  :D

I don't understand why Dawn (my Houston location, anyway) doesn't carry 10x powdered sugar...or pastry flour, or the brand of cake flour I use...but the next time he's here, I'll ask him what the "x" designation means for grins.  :D 

AMacarons though need almond meal and powdered sugar to be stirred through and hand beaten to form your batter. Regular sugar won't cut it. However, yes, you can use coarser sugar to make the melted sugar/water mix which you boil till soft ball stage. The only thing to check is the starch content (if any) in the coarse PS. Can't have any starch in it for that purpose.

How can you guys in the US determine the level of starch in your PS?

In Australia, we have Pure Icing Sugar(100% cane sugar) and Icing Sugar Mixture (with added corn starch) which is softer when set, and does not clump in the packet.

Having lived in Mexico for the last 44 years, I can tell you there are plenty of products you can trust here, Cakepro. 10X is 10X here, there and everywhere. I'll bet the bag didn't say 10X on it. I've bought 10X sugar here for years (by the kilo at my cake supply store, so I'm not sure what brand it is), but if the bag doesn't say 10X, it probably isn't.

I agree with the posters who said to use what you had as regular sugar (by weight) factoring in the cornstarch content. Of course, since you were able to exchange it for what you wanted, this is now a moot question!