Why it works: Sugar and currant are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 26% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 12,256 recipes. The science ↓
Raspberry Jam
Ingredients
Directions
Place the raspberries in a pot, optionally adding currant juice if using.
Boil for 30 minutes, mashing and stirring well.
Add the sugar and cook for an additional 20 minutes.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Photo for illustrative purposes only · Contact us to use it
Explore the science
The flavor team
The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.
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Sugar + curranttop 26% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together12,256 recipes
Sugar and currant barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 12,256 recipes: they work on texture and structure more than aroma.
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Raspberries
- Provide the fruit base, flavor, and most of the body of the jam.
- Sugar
- Adds sweetness and helps the jam thicken and set as the water evaporates.
- Currant juice
- Adds natural pectin and tartness to help the jam set.
The step that matters
Cooking after the sugar is added. Sugar must dissolve fully and the mixture must keep simmering so the pectin and sugar can gel as water evaporates. Stirring keeps the bottom from scorching, and undercooking leaves the jam runny.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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