Why it works: Plum and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 21% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 2,313 recipes. Both carry 1-penten-3-one, which smells fish, pungent. The science ↓
Plum Marmalade
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the fruit
Wash the plums.
Stew them with enough water to prevent scorching.
Mash the plums.
Strain the mixture through a colander.
Make the marmalade
For every 2 cups of pulp, add 1 pound of sugar.
Boil the mixture until it becomes a smooth mass, stirring frequently.
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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Plum + sugartop 21% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together2,313 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-penten-3-one (fish, pungent).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Plums
- Provide the fruit pulp that forms the body and flavor of the marmalade.
- Sugar
- Adds sweetness and, as water evaporates, helps thicken the mixture into a spreadable mass.
The step that matters
Boiling until a smooth mass, stirring frequently. As the water evaporates, the sugar and fruit concentrate and can scorch on the bottom of the pan. Frequent stirring keeps the mixture moving and prevents burnt flavor while it thickens.
“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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