Dried Currants

A reader has asked: Are the currants that come in a box near the raisins in the supermarket the same as the ones used to make currant jelly?

A: Definitely not. The currants in the box are tiny raisins, made from very small grapes. The name for these in French is raisins de Corinthe (raisins from Corinth). Corinthe eventually became corrupted to currant. Real currants (the botanical name is ribes grossularia) are berries related to gooseberries and they grow on small bushes. The come in red, white (fairly rare), and black. The black currants are known as cassis in French.