Why it works: Sugar and apple are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 18% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 16,478 recipes. Both carry beta-damascenone, which smells apple, rose. The science ↓
Blackberry Jam
Ingredients
Directions
Boil the blackberries for about 10 minutes.
Add the sugar and continue to boil, stirring frequently. Remove any scum that forms on the surface.
Cook for 30 to 45 minutes until thickened.
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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Sugar + appletop 18% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together16,478 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
Sugar and apple barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 16,478 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
- Blackberries
- Provide the main fruit flavour, natural pectin and body as the jam thickens.
- White sugar
- Sweetens the jam and helps it set into a thick, spreadable texture.
- Apples
- Add natural pectin that helps the jam thicken and set.
The step that matters
Cooking until thickened. Jam sets as water evaporates and sugar and pectin form a gel. Undercooking leaves it runny, while overcooking can make it stiff or scorch on the bottom of the pan.
“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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