Why it works: Tarragon and vinegar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 2,547 recipes. Both carry isobutyraldehyde, which smells malty, green. The science ↓
Flavored Vinegars
Ingredients
Directions
Make the herb vinegar
Place the herbs in a large jar.
Pour the vinegar over the herbs.
Let the mixture stand for 10 days.
Strain and bottle
Strain the liquid to remove the herbs.
Bottle the flavored vinegar for use.
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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Tarragon + vinegartop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,547 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Herbs (in the method)
- Release their aromatic oils into the vinegar, giving it flavor.
- Sharp vinegar
- Acts as the solvent that extracts and carries the herb flavor.
The step that matters
Let the mixture stand for 10 days. Flavor comes from slow extraction. Too short a standing time leaves the vinegar weak, while the herbs need enough time to steep fully before straining.
“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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