Why it works: Sugar and vanilla are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 8% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 35,032 recipes. Both carry beta-damascenone, which smells apple, rose. The science ↓
Caramel Sauce
Ingredients
Directions
Make the caramel
In a frying pan over low heat, add the brown sugar.
Stir continuously until the sugar melts and turns golden brown.
Finish the sauce
Add the water and butter, stirring until combined.
Mix in the corn starch and vanilla flavoring.
Serve warm.
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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Sugar + vanillatop 8% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together35,032 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
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Corn + vanillatop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,943 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl cinnamate (sweet, balsamic).
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Butter + corntop 14% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together7,345 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-pentanedione (butter, sweet).
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Butter + vanillatop 14% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together20,050 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
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Sugar + buttertop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together98,233 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
Sugar and vanilla barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 35,032 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
- Brown sugar
- Melts and caramelizes to give the sauce its sweetness, color and deep flavor.
- Butter
- Adds fat for a smoother, richer mouthfeel and a rounder flavor.
- Corn starch
- Thickens the liquid so the sauce coats a spoon instead of running thin.
- Vanilla flavoring
- Adds a warm aroma that rounds out the caramel flavor.
The step that matters
Stir continuously until the sugar turns golden brown. Sugar melts, then caramelizes as it heats. Constant stirring spreads the heat evenly so it colors without scorching. Once it darkens too far it turns bitter, and the sauce will taste burnt.
“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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