Why it works: Sugar and lemon are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 18% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 53,532 recipes. Both carry 2-nonenal, which smells fatty, green. The science ↓
Cream Nectar
Ingredients
Directions
Make the syrup
In a large pot, combine the sugar and water over low heat.
Once the sugar dissolves, add the beaten egg whites and bring the mixture to nearly boiling.
Let it boil briefly, then strain the mixture immediately.
Finish and serve
Allow the mixture to cool, then stir in the tartaric acid and lemon flavoring.
To serve, mix a wineglass of the nectar with a tumbler of water and add the baking soda.
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 + lemontop 18% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together53,532 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
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Egg + lemontop 19% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together44,316 recipes
Shared aroma: (e,e)-2,4-decadienal (fatty, deep fried).
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Sugar + eggtop 21% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together122,807 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
- White sugar
- Provides the sweetness and the body of the syrup.
- Egg whites
- Bind impurities during heating so they can be strained out, clarifying the syrup.
- Tartaric acid
- Adds sharp acidity that balances the sweetness.
- Baking soda
- Reacts with the acid when added at serving, producing fizz.
The step that matters
Straining the mixture immediately after it boils briefly. Egg whites coagulate as they heat and carry impurities to the surface; straining right after the brief boil removes them while the syrup is clear. Letting it sit or over-boiling can leave cloudiness and bitter notes.
Swap the lemon
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (sugar, egg):
- Vanillafits better
- Raisinfits about as well
- Lemonthe original
- Datesfits less well
Fit is the average pairing score against sugar, egg. 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.
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