Name: Syrup of Figs
Ingredients: 6 oz coriander seed; 14 oz senna leaves; 24 oz figs; 18 oz cassia pulp; 18 oz tamarind; 12 oz prunes; 1.5 oz extract of licorice; 1.5 oz essence of peppermint; 1 gal simple syrup

Why it works: Coriander and tamarind match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 3% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 271 recipes. Both carry 2-methoxy-4-vinylphenol, which smells clove, smoky. The science ↓

Syrup of Figs

Ingredients

Directions

Make a water extract of the herbs to measure about 4 pints.
Dissolve 8 pounds of sugar in the extract to make the syrup.

Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

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.

Coriander + tamarindtop 3% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together271 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-methoxy-4-vinylphenol (clove, smoky).
Coriander + pepperminttop 4% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together839 recipes

Shared aroma: eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal).
Tamarind + pepperminttop 6% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together44 recipes

Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
Coriander + cassiatop 7% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together115 recipes

Shared aroma: eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal).
Fig + pepperminttop 8% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together55 recipes

Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

Swap the licorice

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (coriander, fig, cassia, tamarind, peppermint, syrup):

Cardamomfits better
Cinnamonfits better
Cuminfits better
Licoricethe original

Fit is the average pairing score against coriander, fig, cassia, tamarind, peppermint, syrup. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.