Why it works: Strawberry and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 20% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 3,060 recipes. Both carry guaiacol, which smells smoky, sweet. The science ↓
Another Very Eine Strawberry Jelly
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the juice
Extract juice from strawberries through a cloth and strain until clear.
Weigh the juice and stir in an equal amount of powdered sugar until dissolved.
Cook
Place the mixture in a preserving pan over a clear fire and stir often until it boils.
Skim off any scum and boil quickly for 15 to 25 minutes.
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.
-
Strawberry + sugartop 20% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together3,060 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Strawberry juice
- Provides the liquid and fruit flavour that the jelly is built from.
- Fine sugar
- Sweetens the jelly and helps it set as it boils down.
The step that matters
Boil quickly and skim off scum. Sugar needs a rapid, steady boil to concentrate and set the jelly. Skimming removes foam and impurities that would cloud the finished jelly.
“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.
You might also like
The free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.
Strawberry Ice Cream122 recipes
Strawberry Sherbet48 recipes
Strawberry Water Ice24 recipes
Strawberry Foam7 recipes