Why it works: Sugar and molasses 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 ↓
Cocoanut Taffy
Ingredients
Directions
Combine milk and molasses in a saucepan.
Bring the mixture to a boil.
Add sugar and let it boil.
When nearly done, add the moistened cocoanut.
Cook until it reaches the consistency of molasses candy.
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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Sugar + molassestop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together9,225 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
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Sugar + milktop 18% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together77,875 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
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Molasses + milktop 21% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together7,243 recipes
Shared aroma: furaneol (caramel, strawberry).
Sugar and milk barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 77,875 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
- Sugar
- Dissolves into the syrup and provides the sweetness and firm set as it cooks.
- Molasses
- Adds deep flavour and colour, and keeps the candy soft and chewy.
- Milk
- Adds moisture and creaminess to the syrup as it cooks down.
- Cocoanut
- Adds texture and chew, and its moisture is absorbed into the candy.
The step that matters
Cook until it reaches the consistency of molasses candy. Sugar syrup sets firmer as water evaporates and its temperature rises. Stopping too early leaves the taffy sticky, while cooking too long makes it hard and brittle.
“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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