Why it works: Plum and vinegar work together. They rank in the top 14% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 655 recipes. Both carry 2-methylbutyl acetate, which smells fruit. The science ↓
Spiced Plums
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Wash and prepare the plums.
Cook
In a large pot, combine the plums and 7 pounds of vinegar.
Add spices to taste and bring to a boil.
Let the mixture boil down until thick.
Before removing from heat, stir in 1 pint of vinegar.
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 + vinegartop 14% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together655 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-methylbutyl acetate (fruit).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Plums
- Provide the bulk of the preserve and natural pectin that helps it thicken as it reduces.
- Vinegar
- Adds acidity and tang that sharpen the flavor of the fruit.
- Spices
- Add aroma and warmth that flavor the preserve.
The step that matters
Boil down until thick. As water evaporates, the sugars and pectin in the fruit concentrate and gel, so the mixture thickens. Stopping too early leaves it runny, while cooking too long can scorch the bottom of the pot.
“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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