Why it works: Rhubarb and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 18% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,852 recipes. Both carry 1-penten-3-one, which smells fish, pungent. The science ↓
To Can Rhubarb
Ingredients
Directions
Cook the rhubarb
Combine rhubarb and water in a preserving kettle to prevent burning.
Add sugar and boil for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally with a wooden or silver spoon.
Jar and seal
Heat jars and pour in the boiling rhubarb gently to avoid breaking the pieces.
Seal jars with rubbers and tops tightly.
Allow to cool before serving.
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.
-
Rhubarb + sugartop 18% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,852 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
- Rhubarb
- Provides the main fruit body and tart flavor of the preserve.
- Sugar
- Sweetens the rhubarb and helps preserve it by binding water and inhibiting spoilage.
The step that matters
Stirring while boiling with sugar. Sugar and rhubarb can scorch on the bottom of the kettle before the mixture thickens. Stirring occasionally with a wooden or silver spoon keeps the fruit from sticking and burning, which would give a bitter, off flavor.
“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.
You might also like
Rhubarb Pie152 recipes
Rhubarb Marmalade35 recipes
Rhubarb Jelly28 recipes
White Cake431 recipesThe free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.