Why it works: Red currant and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 26% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,156 recipes. Both carry 2,3-butanedione, which smells butter, sweet. The science ↓
Red-currant Jelly
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the juice
Gather the currants in fine weather and remove them from the stalks.
Place the currants in a jar and set the jar in a saucepan of boiling water.
Simmer until the juice is well extracted, then strain through a jelly bag or fine cloth.
Make the jelly
Measure the juice and combine with 16 cups of loaf sugar in a preserving pan.
Heat over medium heat, stirring constantly and removing any scum that forms.
Boil for 20 minutes to 30 minutes; test for firmness by placing a little jelly on a plate to cool.
Jar and store
Once done, pour into small jars, cover with oiled paper, and seal with tissue paper coated in egg white.
Label the jars and store in a dry 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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Red currant + sugartop 26% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together1,156 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-butanedione (butter, sweet).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Red currants
- Provide the natural pectin and tart juice that set and flavour the jelly.
- Loaf sugar
- Sweetens the juice and, with boiling, helps the jelly reach a firm set.
The step that matters
Boiling to the set point. Boiling must reach the point where the jelly sets on cooling. Too little boiling leaves it runny, while overboiling can darken and dull the flavour. The cold-plate test shows whether it is ready.
“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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