Why it works: Cream and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 9% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 43,450 recipes. Both carry 2,3-butanedione, which smells butter, sweet. The science ↓
Coffee
Ingredients
Directions
Make the coffee
Pour boiling water over ground coffee and let it boil for a few minutes.
Pour out a cupful and return it; repeat several times.
Dissolve isinglass in a little boiling water and add it to the coffee.
Boil the coffee for an additional 10 minutes.
Let it stand for a few minutes until clear.
Serve
Serve with cream and Lisbon sugar.
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.
-
Cream + sugartop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together43,450 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-butanedione (butter, sweet).
-
Coffee + creamtop 17% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together2,339 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-heptanol (bitter, floral).
-
Coffee + sugartop 17% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together4,344 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
- Ground coffee
- Provides the flavour and aroma that the hot water extracts into the drink.
- Isinglass
- Acts as a fining agent that gathers fine particles so the coffee settles clear.
- Cream
- Adds richness and softens the bitterness of the coffee.
- Lisbon sugar
- Adds sweetness to balance the coffee's bitterness.
The step that matters
Let it stand until clear. Isinglass only clears the coffee if it has time to settle. Serving too soon leaves fine grounds and cloudiness in the cup, so the standing time matters as much as the boiling.
“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 coffee recipes
You might also like
Vegetable Soup350 recipes
Raspberry Vinegar214 recipes
Blackberry Cordial129 recipes
Lemonade126 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.