Why it works: Nutmeg and mace are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 4% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 6,557 recipes. Both carry myristicin, which smells spice, warm. The science ↓
Pickled Salmon
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the salmon
Clean the salmon and cut it into large pieces.
Boil the salmon in salted water until cooked, then drain it.
Wrap the salmon in a dry cloth and refrigerate overnight.
Make the pickle
In a kettle, combine the water used for boiling, vinegar, black pepper, grated nutmeg, and mace.
Boil the mixture covered to prevent flavor loss, then let it cool completely.
Pour the cooled vinegar mixture over the salmon and add sweet oil on top.
Cover the salmon tightly and store in a dry, cool place for preservation.
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.
-
Nutmeg + macetop 4% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together6,557 recipes
Shared aroma: myristicin (spice, warm).
-
Pepper + nutmegtop 7% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together13,015 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
-
Vinegar + peppertop 14% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together27,814 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
-
Pepper + macetop 16% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together12,257 recipes
Shared aroma: myristicin (spice, warm).
-
Vinegar + macetop 25% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together4,415 recipes
Pepper and mace barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 12,257 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
- Salmon
- Is the main protein that is cooked, then pickled and preserved in the vinegar brine.
- Vinegar
- Provides the acidity that preserves the fish and gives it a sharp, tangy flavor.
- Black pepper
- Adds sharp, aromatic heat that flavors the pickling liquid.
- Nutmeg
- Contributes warm, aromatic spice flavor to the pickling liquid.
- Mace
- Contributes a delicate, warm aroma to the pickling liquid.
The step that matters
Cooling the vinegar mixture before pouring it over the salmon. Pouring hot liquid over cooked fish can soften its texture and cook it further, so the mixture should be fully cooled first. Cooling also keeps the flavors from being driven off by heat before the pickle sets.
Swap the mace
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (salmon, vinegar, pepper, nutmeg):
- Allspicefits better
- Dillfits better
- Tarragonfits better
- Macethe original
Fit is the average pairing score against salmon, vinegar, pepper, nutmeg. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.
“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.
You might also like
Salmon Salad155 recipes
Salmon Croquettes129 recipes
Canned Salmon14 recipes
Smoked Salmon14 recipesThe free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.