Why it works: Apricot and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 18% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 3,630 recipes. Both carry 2-nonenal, which smells fatty, green. The science ↓
Apricot Jam
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the apricots
Divide fine apricots that are not overripe, laying the hollow part uppermost in a dish.
Sprinkle 12 ounces of sifted sugar over the apricots.
Let the apricots become moist.
Stir the mixture well.
Finish the jam
Blanch the kernels.
Boil the kernels with the jam.
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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Apricot + sugartop 18% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together3,630 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
- Fine apricots
- Provide the fruit, pectin and flavour that form the body of the jam.
- Sifted sugar
- Sweetens the jam and draws moisture out of the fruit, helping it soften and set.
- Blanched apricot kernels
- Add a nutty, almond-like aroma to the finished jam.
The step that matters
Boil the kernels with the jam. Sugar and fruit must reach a full boil long enough for the jam to thicken and set; boiling too briefly leaves it runny, while over-boiling can scorch the sugar and dull the flavour.
“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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