Why it works: Egg and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 21% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 122,807 recipes. Both carry 2-nonenal, which smells fatty, green. The science ↓
Jelly Mould
Ingredients
Directions
Make the syrup
Bring sugar and water to a boil, then simmer for 15 minutes without stirring.
Remove from heat and let it stand for another 15 minutes.
Clarify and set
Beat the egg whites until stiff.
Strain the mixture through a jelly bag 2-3 times until clear.
Pour into moulds and refrigerate overnight.
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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Egg + sugartop 21% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together122,807 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Egg whites
- Whipped to foam, they help bind impurities so the liquid can be strained clear.
- Sugar
- Provides sweetness and, once dissolved and boiled, helps the liquid set into a jelly.
- Water
- Dissolves the sugar so it can be boiled into a syrup.
The step that matters
Simmering without stirring. Stirring during the boil can cause sugar crystals to form on the pan or in the syrup, leading to a grainy rather than clear jelly. Keeping the syrup undisturbed helps it stay smooth and 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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