Question

After the Egyptians crushed cut cane and captured the juice, they boiled and strained the liquid, let it settle, then strained it again. The cane juice was now poured into molds with holes in the bottom, so that all the liquid could drain out, leaving only a powder. That powder was then mixed with milk and boiled again. After one round of these steps, the process was repeated all over again. As a result of all this effort and care, Egypt was known for the “whitest and purest” sugar.

–Sugar Changed the World,
Marc Aronson and Marina Budhos

How do the details in the passage support the central idea?

The details compare the Egyptian process of refining sugar to processes used by other people.
The details explain how Egyptians created the process to refine white sugar.
The details clarify the simplistic approach that Egyptians used to refine white sugar.
The details describe the extensive and repetitive process necessary to create white sugar.

Answer 1

The details describe the extensive and repetitive process necessary to create white sugar.

Explanation: The passage lists multiple repeated steps (boiling, straining, settling, draining, mixing with milk, repeating the cycle) showing how laborious and repetitive the refining was to produce very white, pure sugar.