Why it works: Parsley and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 39% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 3,535 recipes. Both carry 1-penten-3-one, which smells fish, pungent. The science ↓
Parsley Jelly
Ingredients
Directions
Make the juice
Wash the fresh parsley and place it in a preserving pan.
Cover the parsley with cold water and boil gently for about 30 minutes.
Strain the mixture through a well-sterilized jelly bag.
Measure the juice; for every pint, use ¾ pound of sugar.
Make the jelly
Boil the juice for 20 minutes, then add the heated sugar and boil for an additional 10 minutes.
Jar and seal
Pour the jelly into dry, sterilized jars and seal.
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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Parsley + sugartop 39% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together3,535 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-penten-3-one (fish, pungent).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Fresh parsley
- Provides the main flavour and aroma of the jelly through its juice.
- Sugar
- Adds sweetness and helps the juice set into a firm, spreadable gel.
The step that matters
Boiling the juice with the sugar. Sugar must dissolve fully before the final boil, and the mixture must reach a full set point. Boiling too briefly leaves the jelly runny, while boiling too long makes it stiff and can darken its flavour.
“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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