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 ↓
Easpbeeey Jam
Ingredients
Directions
Make the jam
Mash the raspberries in a preserving kettle.
Add the white sugar and currant juice.
Boil gently until the mixture jellies on a cold plate.
Pour into small jars.
Seal and store
Cover with brandied paper and tie a thick white paper over them.
Store in a dark, dry, and cool 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
What each ingredient does
- Raspberries
- Provide the main fruit flavour, colour and pectin-bearing bulk for the jam.
- White sugar
- Sweetens the jam and helps it thicken and set as it cooks down.
- Currant juice
- Adds natural acidity and pectin that help the jam gel.
The step that matters
Boil gently until the mixture jellies on a cold plate. Jam sets when enough water evaporates and the sugar and pectin reach the right concentration. Testing on a cold plate shows whether it will gel, so undercooking leaves it runny and overcooking can make it stiff or caramelised.
“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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