Why it works: Sugar and vinegar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 15% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 20,806 recipes. Both carry beta-damascenone, which smells apple, rose. The science ↓
Butter Scotch
Ingredients
Directions
Cook the mixture
Combine brown sugar, butter, water, vinegar, and baking soda in a large pot.
Boil the mixture for 1 hour.
Test for doneness
Drop a small amount of the mixture into cold water to test for doneness.
If it forms a crisp ball, the candy is done.
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 + vinegartop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together20,806 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
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Sugar + buttertop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together98,233 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
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Butter + vinegartop 23% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together13,513 recipes
Shared aroma: isoamyl acetate (banana, pear).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Brown sugar
- Provides the sweetness and, as it concentrates while boiling, sets into the firm candy texture.
- Butter
- Adds fat for rich flavor and a smooth, tender bite.
- Vinegar
- Adds acidity that helps keep the sugar from crystallizing, so the candy stays smooth.
The step that matters
Testing for doneness in cold water. As the mixture boils, water evaporates and the sugar concentration rises, which determines the final texture. A small test drop shows whether the candy has reached a firm ball stage, so the cook can stop before it turns too hard or stays 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.
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