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RElish for Stuffed Peppers

A pickle-based relish for stuffed peppers.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 11 ingredients
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Why it works: Tomato and coriander are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 3,967 recipes. Both carry trans-2-decenal, which smells waxy, orange. The science ↓

RElish for Stuffed Peppers

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare

  1. Run all of the pickle stock through a chopper.

  2. Put the chopped mixture in a kettle with the spices and sugar.

Cook

  1. Cook for 30 minutes, stirring constantly.

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.

  1. Tomato + coriandertop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together3,967 recipes

    Shared aroma: trans-2-decenal (waxy, orange).

  2. Cauliflower + mustardtop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together687 recipes

    Shared aroma: trans-2-hexenal (green, leafy).

  3. Celery + mustardtop 2% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together4,169 recipes

    Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).

  4. Tomato + celerytop 4% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together3,377 recipes

    Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).

  5. Pepper + celerytop 5% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together16,012 recipes

    Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).

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

What each ingredient does

Sour pickles
Provide the chopped bulk and the sour, tangy base flavor of the relish.
Green peppers
Add bulk, fresh pepper flavor and a slight bitterness.
Cauliflower stock
Supplies the liquid that keeps the chopped mixture moist while it cooks.
Green tomatoes
Add bulk and a tart flavor with a firm texture.
White onions
Contribute savory flavor and aroma as they soften during cooking.
Granulated sugar
Adds sweetness that balances the sourness of the pickles.

The step that matters

Cook for 30 minutes, stirring constantly. The mixture is thick and rich in sugar, so it can scorch on the bottom of the kettle. Constant stirring spreads the heat evenly and keeps the sugars from burning, which would give a bitter taste.

Swap the onion

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (pepper, cauliflower, tomato, sugar, celery, mustard, coriander):

  1. Broccolifits better
  2. Capsicumfits better
  3. Lettucefits better
  4. Onionthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against pepper, cauliflower, tomato, sugar, celery, mustard, coriander. 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.

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