Why it works: Red currant and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 26% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,156 recipes. Both carry 2,3-butanedione, which smells butter, sweet. The science ↓
Gooseberry Jam
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the syrup
Prepare 1 quart of red currant juice as for red currant jelly.
In a preserving pan, combine the red currant juice and sugar. Stir until the sugar dissolves.
Boil for about 5 minutes. Skim well.
Cook the jam
Add the gooseberries.
Boil for 30 to 45 minutes.
Transfer the mixture to an earthen pan. Let it sit for 2 days.
Boil the jam again until it looks clear.
Pot and store
Pour into pots. Cover with oiled paper.
Seal with tissue paper brushed with egg white. Store in a dry place.
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.
-
Red currant + sugartop 26% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together1,156 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-butanedione (butter, sweet).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Gooseberries
- Provide the fruit body and tartness that form the jam's main flavour and set.
- Red currant juice
- Adds natural pectin and acidity to help the jam set.
- Sugar
- Sweetens the jam and helps it set and keep by binding water.
The step that matters
Boil the jam again until it looks clear. Reboiling after the resting period drives off excess water so the jam reaches a proper set. Stopping too early leaves it runny, while overcooking can make it dark and sticky.
“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.
More gooseberry jam recipes
You might also like
Red Currant Jelly65 recipes
Currant Ice Cream32 recipes
Currant Sherbet9 recipes
Currant and Raspberry Ice7 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.