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 ↓
Quince Jelly
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the fruit
Pare, quarter, and core the quinces as quickly as possible.
Place the quinces in a pot with 1 pint of water for each pound of fruit.
Simmer gently until the quinces are slightly broken, ensuring the juice remains pale.
Extract and make the jelly
Strain the liquid through a jelly bag or fine cloth without applying pressure.
Weigh the juice and transfer it to a clean preserving pan.
Boil the juice quickly for 20 minutes.
Remove from heat and stir in 12 ounces of sugar for each pound of juice, or 14 ounces if the fruit is very acidic.
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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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
- Ripe quinces
- Provide the pectin and tart flavour that allow the juice to set into a jelly.
- Sugar
- Sweetens the jelly and helps it set firm and keep well when boiled with the juice.
The step that matters
Straining without pressure. Squeezing the bag pushes cloudy pulp and fine particles through, which makes the jelly cloudy. Letting the juice drip slowly keeps it clear.
“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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