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 ↓
Preserved Quinces
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the fruit
Pare and core the quinces, then cut them into quarters.
Boil the fruit in water until tender.
Weigh the fruit and add 1 pound of sugar for each pound of fruit.
Make the syrup
In a preserving kettle, combine the sugar with ½ cup of water for each pound of sugar and ¼ ounce of dissolved isinglass for every 6 pounds of fruit.
Boil the mixture and skim off any scum until no more rises.
Pour the syrup into another vessel and wash the kettle to remove any remaining scum.
Return the syrup to the kettle and add the fruit.
Cook and preserve
Boil over a brisk fire for about 1.5 hours, or until the fruit looks clear when held to the light.
Once translucent, remove from heat and take out the fruit, placing it on broad dishes.
Strain the syrup, then when lukewarm, place the fruit in jars and pour the syrup over it.
When cold, cover with brandy paper and seal tightly.
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
- Quinces
- Provide the fruit that becomes tender and turns translucent during long cooking.
- Sugar
- Sweetens the fruit and, in the syrup, helps preserve it and keep it clear.
- Isinglass
- Gelatin-like protein that helps the syrup set and gives the preserved fruit a clear, firm body.
The step that matters
Skimming the syrup until no more scum rises. Scum is impurities and proteins rising to the surface; removing it fully keeps the syrup clear and stops it spoiling. Washing the kettle before returning the syrup prevents leftover scum from re-entering.
“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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