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 ↓
Raspberry Jam
Ingredients
Directions
Combine the raspberries, sugar, and currant juice in a preserving pan.
Set the pan over a brisk fire and bring to a boil.
Skim off any foam, then simmer until the mixture reaches a good consistency.
Optionally, mash the raspberries with a spoon before adding the sugar, or rub them through a sieve.
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.
Photo for illustrative purposes only · Contact us to use it
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 body and flavour of the jam.
- Sugar
- Adds sweetness and helps the jam thicken and set as water evaporates.
- Currant juice
- Adds tartness and natural pectin to help the jam set.
The step that matters
Simmering to a good consistency. Sugar, acid and pectin set the jam as water evaporates and the mixture concentrates. Stopping too early leaves it runny, while cooking too long makes it stiff and dense once it cools.
“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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