Why it works: Sugar and quince are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 21% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,444 recipes. Both carry 1-penten-3-one, which smells fish, pungent. The science ↓
Quince Jelly
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the fruit
Pare and slice the quinces.
Place them in a preserving pan with enough water to float them.
Boil until tender and the fruit is reduced to a pulp.
Strain off the clear juice.
Make the jelly
For each pint of juice, add 1 lb of loaf sugar.
Boil the juice and sugar together for about 30 minutes.
Remove any scum that rises to the surface.
To test if the jelly is done, pour a little on a plate; if it firms up, it's ready.
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 + quincetop 21% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,444 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
- Quinces
- Provide the pectin and tart flavour that give the jelly its set and character.
- Loaf sugar
- Sweetens the juice and, when boiled down, helps the jelly set firm.
The step that matters
Testing for set. Jelly sets only when enough pectin, acid and sugar are concentrated by boiling. Underboiled juice stays runny, while overboiling can make it stiff or cloudy, so the plate test shows when it is ready.
“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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