Why it works: Rhubarb and almond match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 117 recipes. Both carry coumarin, which smells sweet, hay. The science ↓
Rhubarb Mould
Ingredients
Directions
Make the rhubarb mixture
Boil the rhubarb with sugar, almonds, lemon juice, and lemon rind over a brisk fire until thick and smooth, about 30 minutes.
Dissolve the isinglass or gelatin in boiling water.
Stir the dissolved isinglass or gelatin into the rhubarb mixture.
Set and serve
Pour the mixture into a mould soaked in cold water.
Place the mould in a cool place or on ice until firm.
Turn out the mould.
Serve with Devonshire or other cream.
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 + almondtop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together117 recipes
Shared aroma: coumarin (sweet, hay).
-
Rhubarb + lemontop 7% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together546 recipes
Shared aroma: acetic acid (sour, vinegar).
-
Almond + lemontop 10% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together5,655 recipes
Shared aroma: eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal).
-
Sugar + almondtop 18% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together15,679 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-penten-3-one (fish, pungent).
-
Sugar + lemontop 18% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together53,532 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Sugar and lemon barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 53,532 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
- Rhubarb
- Provides the bulk and tart flavour of the mould as it cooks down to a thick pulp.
- Sugar
- Sweetens the rhubarb and helps it cook down to a thick, smooth texture.
- Isinglass or gelatine
- Sets the cooked rhubarb so it holds its shape when turned out of the mould.
- Bitter almonds
- Add a subtle almond aroma to the rhubarb mixture.
The step that matters
Stir the dissolved isinglass or gelatin into the rhubarb mixture. Gelatine or isinglass must be fully dissolved before it is stirred in, or it can form lumps and set unevenly. The mixture should also be cool enough not to melt the setting agent's structure, so the mould sets smooth and firm.
Swap the lemon
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (rhubarb, sugar, almond):
- Vanillafits better
- Figfits better
- Raisinfits better
- Lemonthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against rhubarb, sugar, almond. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.
“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
Lemon Cake228 recipes
Rhubarb Pie152 recipes
Lemon Ice147 recipes
Lemon Sherbet103 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.