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 ↓
Sugar Candy
Ingredients
Directions
Make the candy
In a saucepan, combine the light brown sugar, water, and vinegar.
Cook the mixture until a small amount dropped in cold water hardens.
Once done, stir in the butter.
Add Price’s special extract to flavor.
Pour the mixture into a buttered dish.
Finish the candy
When cool, pull the candy to a light color.
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.
-
Sugar + vinegartop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together20,806 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
-
Sugar + buttertop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together98,233 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
-
Vinegar + buttertop 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
- Light brown sugar
- Provides the sweetness and the caramel flavor and structure that sets as the candy cooks and cools.
- Vinegar
- Adds a small amount of acidity, which helps prevent sugar from crystallizing too large during cooking.
- Butter
- Adds fat for a softer, smoother texture and richer flavor in the finished candy.
The step that matters
Cooking to the hard-water test. The cold-water test is a rough guide to how much water has boiled off and how firm the candy will be. Cooking too little leaves it sticky, and cooking too long makes it brittle.
“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.
More sugar candy recipes
You might also like
White Cake431 recipes
Pound Cake373 recipes
Orange Bundt Cake349 recipes
Spice Cake344 recipesThe free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.