Why it works: Peach and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 17% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 2,308 recipes. Both carry beta-damascenone, which smells apple, rose. The science ↓
Brandy Peaches
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the peaches
Soak the peaches in cold, clear water.
Boil the sugar with a little water until it forms a thick syrup.
Add enough peaches to float on top and cook until tender enough to pierce with a straw.
Remove the peaches and drain them in a colander.
Repeat until all peaches are cooked.
Make the syrup and jar
Return the syrup to the kettle and boil until very thick again.
Place the peaches in an airtight jar and pour the hot syrup over them, filling the jar ¾ full.
Top off the jar with alcohol, leaving ½ inch of space at the top.
Seal the jars and shake well to mix the syrup and alcohol.
Repeat shaking every day for a week.
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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Peach + sugartop 17% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together2,308 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Peaches
- Provide the fruit, which softens when cooked and gives the preserve its body and flavor.
- Loaf sugar
- Forms a thick syrup that sweetens the fruit and preserves it by drawing out water.
- Alcohol
- Adds aroma and flavor and helps preserve the fruit in the jar.
The step that matters
Boil the syrup until very thick again. Sugar must be concentrated enough to preserve the fruit; syrup that stays thin leaves the peaches more prone to spoiling in the jar.
“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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