Why it works: Plum and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 21% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 2,313 recipes. Both carry 1-penten-3-one, which smells fish, pungent. The science ↓
Magnum Bonum Plum Jam
Ingredients
Directions
Remove the skins and stones from the plums.
Boil the plums gently for 40 minutes, stirring constantly to prevent burning.
Add the sugar and boil for an additional 10 minutes.
Three to four minutes before removing from heat, add the blanched and sliced kernels.
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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Plum + sugartop 21% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together2,313 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
- Plums
- Provide the fruit, pectin and acidity that give the jam its body and flavour.
- Sugar
- Sweetens the jam and helps it set into a thick, spreadable texture.
- Kernels
- Add a nutty, almond-like aroma and crunch to the finished jam.
The step that matters
Stirring the plums while they boil. Sugar-rich fruit scorches easily on the bottom of the pan, and burnt sugar gives a bitter taste. Constant stirring spreads the heat evenly and keeps the jam from sticking.
“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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