Why it works: Quince and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 21% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,444 recipes. Both carry 1-penten-3-one, which smells fish, pungent. The science ↓
Quince Marmalade
Ingredients
Directions
Add 1 pound of white sugar to 1 pound of quince pulp.
Boil the mixture until perfectly smooth, stirring constantly.
If not using jelly, cut quinces into small pieces, add 1 pound of sugar and enough water to dissolve the sugar.
Boil until it becomes a smooth paste, stirring constantly.
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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Quince + sugartop 21% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,444 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-penten-3-one (fish, pungent).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Quince pulp
- Provides the fruit base, natural pectin for setting, and the characteristic flavor.
- White sugar
- Sweetens the marmalade and, when concentrated by boiling, helps it thicken and keep.
The step that matters
Boiling until smooth, with constant stirring. Sugar and fruit thicken as water evaporates and pectin sets on cooling. Stirring constantly prevents the sugars from scorching on the bottom of the pan, which would give a burnt taste and a gritty texture.
“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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