Why it works: Cider and vinegar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 6% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 3,431 recipes. Both carry 4-ethyl-2-methoxyphenol, which smells smoky, clove. The science ↓
Raspberry Shrub
Ingredients
Directions
Make the syrup
Combine fruit juice, sugar, and cider vinegar in a pot.
Heat over medium until sugar dissolves.
Boil until it thickens into a syrup.
Skim off any foam, then strain and bottle.
Serve
To serve, mix ¼ cup syrup with ¾ cup ice water.
Adjust water to taste if syrup is too thin.
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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Cider + vinegartop 6% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together3,431 recipes
Shared aroma: 4-ethyl-2-methoxyphenol (smoky, clove).
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Vinegar + sugartop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together20,806 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
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Cider + sugartop 27% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together3,308 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Sugar
- Provides sweetness and, when boiled, thickens the juice into a syrup.
- Cider vinegar
- Adds acidity that gives the shrub its tart, sharp flavour.
- Fruit juice
- Supplies the main fruit flavour and liquid base of the syrup.
The step that matters
Boil until it thickens into a syrup. Boiling concentrates the sugar and juice so the syrup keeps well and stays thick enough to dilute properly. Stopping too early leaves a thin syrup that is watery when mixed with ice water.
“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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