Why it works: Sugar and currant are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 26% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 12,256 recipes. The science ↓
Cherry Jam
Ingredients
Directions
Remove the stones from the cherries, keeping them whole, and preserve the kernels.
In a preserving pan, combine the red-currant juice or water with the sugar and boil to create a syrup.
Add the cherries and kernels to the syrup and simmer gently until the cherries are tender but not broken.
Check if the juice jellies by pouring a little on a cold plate.
Pour the jam into jars, cover with paper dipped in brandy, and seal with tissue paper brushed with egg white.
Store in a cool, dry place.
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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Sugar + curranttop 26% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together12,256 recipes
Sugar and currant barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 12,256 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
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