Why it works: Orange and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 20% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 19,212 recipes. Both carry beta-damascenone, which smells apple, rose. The science ↓
Orange Marmalade
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the fruit
Pare the oranges, removing the inner skin and yellow peel.
Slice the oranges and remove the seeds.
Grate the peel of 4 oranges and set aside.
Make the marmalade
Put the fruit and grated peel into a porcelain kettle and boil until the pulp is smooth.
Remove from heat and rub through a clean colander.
Stir in 6 pounds of granulated sugar and return to the fire.
Boil rapidly, stirring constantly for 30 minutes.
Jar
Pour into small jars while warm and seal when cold.
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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Orange + sugartop 20% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together19,212 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
Orange and sugar barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 19,212 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
- Sweet oranges
- Provide the fruit pulp and juice that form the body of the marmalade.
- Granulated sugar
- Sweetens the marmalade and helps it set to a thick, spreadable texture.
- Orange peel
- Adds bitterness and aroma, and pectin that helps the marmalade set.
The step that matters
Boil rapidly, stirring constantly for 30 minutes. Sugar must dissolve fully and the mixture must reach a hard, active boil so pectin and sugar can set. Constant stirring prevents the sugar and fruit from scorching 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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