Name: Strawberry Cordial
Ingredients: 3 quarts strawberry juice; 1 quart double proof spirit; 10 pounds sugar; 7 quarts water; cochineal (for coloring)

Why it works: Strawberry and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 20% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 3,060 recipes. Both carry guaiacol, which smells smoky, sweet. The science ↓

Strawberry Cordial

Ingredients

Directions

Filter the strawberry juice.
In a large container, combine the filtered strawberry juice, double proof spirit, sugar, and water. Stir until the sugar is fully dissolved.
Add cochineal to achieve the desired color.

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.

Strawberry + sugartop 20% of all pairs

Smell alikelow

Cooked together3,060 recipes

Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
Spirit + sugartop 25% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together602 recipes

Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
Strawberry + spirittop 29% of all pairs

Smell alikelow

Cooked together6 recipes

Shared aroma: ethyl octanoate (fruity, wine).

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

What each ingredient does

Strawberry juice: Provides the main flavor and the fruit base of the cordial.
Double proof spirit: Adds alcohol, which carries aroma and helps preserve the cordial.
Sugar: Adds sweetness and balances the acidity of the fruit juice.
Cochineal: Gives the cordial its red color.