Why it works: Grape and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 23% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 7,490 recipes. Both carry beta-damascenone, which smells apple, rose. The science ↓
Grape Jam.
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Remove grapes from stems and rinse in cold water.
Drain and weigh the grapes.
Cover grapes with sugar and let sit overnight.
Cook
Cook on low heat, stirring until sugar dissolves.
Increase heat and cook until jam is thick and clear.
To remove seeds, halve the grapes and take them out.
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.
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Grape + sugartop 23% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together7,490 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
- Hanepot grapes
- Provide the fruit, flavour and natural pectin that help the jam set.
- Sugar
- Sweetens the jam and, as it cooks down, helps it thicken and keep.
The step that matters
Increase heat and cook until jam is thick and clear. Thickening happens as water evaporates and the sugar and the grapes' natural pectin concentrate. Cooking too long or too hot can scorch the sugar and leave the jam stiff or dark, so watch closely as it thickens.
“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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