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To Preserve Apricots

A method for preserving apricots in sugar, brandy, and syrup.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 6 ingredients
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Why it works: Apricot and brandy work together. They rank in the top 8% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 513 recipes. Both carry ethyl octanoate, which smells fruity, wine. The science ↓

To Preserve Apricots

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare the apricots

  1. Remove the pits from the apricots.

  2. Place the pitted apricots in small pots.

  3. Pour brandy over the apricots.

  4. Add the kernels.

  5. Skim off any scum that rises to the surface.

  6. Cover the pots with brandy paper.

  7. Peel the apricots thinly.

  8. Weigh an equal amount of powdered sugar.

  9. Strew the sugar over the apricots.

  10. Let the apricots sit for a day.

  11. Boil gently until the apricots are clear.

  12. Transfer the apricots to a bowl.

  13. Pour the liquid over the apricots.

Make the jelly

  1. Combine the liquid with a quart of strained codlin liquor.

  2. Add a pound of fine sugar.

  3. Boil until the mixture jellies.

  4. Add the apricots to the jelly mixture.

  5. Boil once.

  6. Skim well.

  7. Transfer the apricots to small pots.

Pot and preserve

  1. Layer vine or apricot leaves and fruit alternately in a pot.

  2. Finish with a thick layer of leaves.

  3. Fill the pot with spring water.

  4. Cover tightly to prevent steam from escaping.

  5. Place the pot at a distance from the fire.

  6. Wait four to five hours until the apricots are soft but not cracked.

  7. Make a thin syrup with some of the water.

  8. Drain the fruit.

  9. Combine the fruit and syrup in a pan.

  10. Keep at a distance from the fire until the apricots are green, avoiding boiling.

  11. Transfer the apricots to a pan with syrup for two to three days.

  12. Pour off excess syrup.

  13. Boil the syrup with more sugar to create a rich syrup.

  14. Add sliced ginger if desired.

  15. Once cooled, pour the thick syrup over the apricots.

Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

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.

  1. Apricot + brandytop 8% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together513 recipes

    Shared aroma: ethyl octanoate (fruity, wine).

  2. Apricot + gingertop 8% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together341 recipes

    Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).

  3. Sugar + gingertop 17% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together14,054 recipes

    Shared aroma: 1-penten-3-one (fish, pungent).

  4. Apricot + sugartop 18% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together3,630 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).

  5. Sugar + brandytop 19% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together11,939 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).

Sugar and ginger barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 14,054 recipes: they work on texture and structure more than aroma.

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Apricots
Form the main fruit that is softened and preserved in sugar syrup.
Fine sugar
Preserves the fruit and sets the jelly through its high sugar content.
Brandy
Acts as a preservative, helping keep the fruit from spoiling.
Vine or apricot leaves
Add a subtle aroma to the fruit as they are layered in the pot.

The step that matters

Keep the apricots at a distance from the fire, avoiding boiling. Gentle, indirect heat softens the fruit slowly so it stays whole. Boiling would break the skins and cook the fruit to mush, spoiling its shape and texture.

Swap the ginger

The recipe marks ginger as optional. How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (apricot, sugar, brandy):

  1. Cinnamonfits better
  2. Gingerthe original
  3. Nutmegfits about as well
  4. Clovefits about as well

Fit is the average pairing score against apricot, sugar, brandy. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“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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