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Preserved Peaches

A method of preserving peaches by layering with sugar, boiling kernels, and canning in syrup with brandy.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 4 ingredients
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Why it works: Peach and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 17% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 2,308 recipes. Both carry beta-damascenone, which smells apple, rose. The science ↓

Preserved Peaches

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare the peaches

  1. Weigh the peeled peaches and remove the stones.

  2. For every pound of peaches, use a pound of sugar.

  3. Crack a quarter of the stones.

  4. Extract the kernels.

  5. Boil the kernels in enough water to cover until soft.

  6. Set the boiled kernels aside to steep in a covered vessel.

Cook the peaches

  1. Layer sugar and peaches in a kettle, starting with sugar.

  2. Warm the kettle slowly until the sugar melts and the fruit heats through.

  3. Strain the kernel water.

  4. Add the strained kernel water to the kettle.

  5. Boil steadily until the peaches are tender and clear.

  6. Use a perforated skimmer to remove the peaches.

  7. Place the peaches on large flat dishes, crowding them as little as possible.

  8. Boil the syrup until it thickens and becomes clear.

  9. Skim off any scum.

Jar and seal

  1. Fill jars two-thirds full with peaches.

  2. Pour the boiling syrup over the peaches.

  3. Cover the jars with brandy tissue paper, cloth, and thick paper tied tightly.

  4. Boil the peaches for one hour and the syrup for an additional fifteen minutes, stirring often.

Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

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.

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.

  1. Peach + sugartop 17% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together2,308 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Peaches
Provide the fruit and flesh that become tender and clear in the syrup.
Sugar
Sweetens the fruit and, in syrup, helps preserve it and keep it clear.
Peach stones
Their kernels are steeped in water to add a subtle almond-like flavor to the syrup.

The step that matters

Boil the peaches until tender and clear. Heating the fruit gently in syrup lets sugar slowly replace the water in the flesh, so it becomes clear and firm. Boiling too hard can break the peaches apart.

“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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