Why it works: Quince and sugar 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
Rub off the down from the quinces, core them, and cut them into small pieces.
Place the quinces in a preserving kettle with ½ cup of water for each pound.
Stew gently until soft, without mashing.
Extract the juice
Put the quinces in a thin muslin bag with the liquid and press lightly.
Sweeten and set
For each pint of liquid, add 1 pound of sugar and stir until dissolved.
Boil gently until it sets to a good jelly consistency when cooled on a plate.
Pour into pots or tumblers and secure as directed for jellies.
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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Quince + sugartop 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
- Supply natural pectin and tart flavour that help the jelly set.
- Sugar
- Sweetens the jelly and helps it set firm and keep well.
The step that matters
Boil until the jelly sets. Boiling concentrates the liquid and raises the sugar and pectin level so it gels. Stop too early and the jelly stays runny; boil too long and it becomes stiff and dull. Testing a cooled spoonful on a plate 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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