Why it works: Sugar and currant are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 26% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 12,256 recipes. The science ↓
Raspberry Jam
Ingredients
Directions
Layer the raspberries and sugar in a pot, mashing them together.
Let the mixture stand for 1 hour.
Add the currant juice and bring to a boil.
Boil for 30 minutes.
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.
Photo for illustrative purposes only · Contact us to use it
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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Sugar + curranttop 26% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together12,256 recipes
Sugar and currant barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 12,256 recipes: they work on texture and structure more than aroma.
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Raspberries
- Provide the main fruit body, flavor, and pectin-bearing pulp that gives the jam its base.
- Sugar
- Sweetens the jam and draws water out of the fruit, helping it thicken and preserve.
- Currant juice
- Adds extra natural pectin and tartness to help the jam set.
The step that matters
Boil for 30 minutes. Boiling long enough concentrates the sugar and fruit until the pectin can set the jam; too short a boil leaves it runny, while overcooking can make it dull and sticky.
“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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