Why it works: Molasses and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 11% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 9,225 recipes. Both carry ethanol, which smells alcoholic, ethereal. The science ↓
Molasses Candy
Ingredients
Directions
Combine molasses, sugar, vinegar, and butter in a saucepan.
Boil the mixture for 10 minutes, stirring constantly.
Remove from heat and let it cool.
Once cool, pull the candy until it becomes light in color.
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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Molasses + sugartop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together9,225 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
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Sugar + vinegartop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together20,806 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
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Sugar + buttertop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together98,233 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
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Vinegar + buttertop 23% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together13,513 recipes
Shared aroma: isoamyl acetate (banana, pear).
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Molasses + vinegartop 26% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together1,253 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Molasses
- Gives the candy its dark colour, rich flavour and sweetness.
- Sugar
- Adds sweetness and helps set the candy's firm texture.
- Vinegar
- Acid helps keep sugar from crystallizing into grainy crystals.
- Butter
- Adds fat for a softer, smoother bite.
The step that matters
Pulling the candy once cool. Pulling traps air into the candy as it cools and stiffens, which makes it opaque and lighter in colour. Pulling while it is still too hot or too soft can cause it to stick and not lighten properly.
“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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