Name: Quinces Stewed
Ingredients: quinces; sugar; port wine

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 ↓

Quinces Stewed

Ingredients

quinces
sugar
port wine

Directions

Peel and quarter the quinces, removing the cores.
In a pot, combine quinces with more sugar and half the amount of port wine.
Simmer gently until the quinces are well done and perfectly red.
If using for apple pies, pour the cooking liquid over the quinces.

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.

Quince + sugartop 21% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together1,444 recipes

Shared aroma: 1-penten-3-one (fish, pungent).
Quince + port winetop 22% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together3 recipes

Shared aroma: ethyl isobutyrate (fruity, ethereal).
Sugar + port winetop 24% of all pairs

Smell alikelow

Cooked together805 recipes

Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).