Why it works: Molasses and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 11% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 9,225 recipes. Both carry ethanol, which smells alcoholic, ethereal. The science ↓
Molasses Candy
Ingredients
Directions
Make the candy
In a saucepan, combine molasses, sugar, vinegar, and butter.
Boil the mixture without stirring until it hardens when dropped in cold water.
Remove from heat and stir in 1 teaspoon of baking soda.
Pour the mixture onto buttered tins.
Finish and cut
Once cool, pull the candy and cut it into sticks.
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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Molasses + sugartop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together9,225 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
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Sugar + vinegartop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together20,806 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
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Sugar + buttertop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together98,233 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
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Vinegar + buttertop 23% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together13,513 recipes
Shared aroma: isoamyl acetate (banana, pear).
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Molasses + vinegartop 26% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together1,253 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Molasses
- Provides the dark colour, deep flavour and sweetness of the candy.
- Sugar
- Adds sweetness and, when boiled, helps the mixture set firm and brittle.
- Vinegar
- Adds a little acidity that balances the sweetness of the molasses and sugar.
- Butter
- Adds fat for a smoother texture and helps keep the candy from sticking.
- Baking soda (in the method)
- Reacts with the acid in the mixture to create gas bubbles that lighten the candy's texture.
The step that matters
Boil without stirring until it hardens in cold water. Sugar syrup stirred while boiling can crystallise and turn grainy. Boiling to the hard stage, tested by dropping a bit into cold water, drives off enough water so the candy sets hard and brittle rather than sticky.
“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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