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Quick Pickled Onions

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Quick Pickled Onions

Why it works: Apple cider vinegar and onion work together. They rank in the top 15% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 469 recipes. Both carry 2,4-decadienal, which smells seaweed. The science ↓

Quick Pickled Onions

Makes about 1/2 cup

Ingredients

Directions

Step-by-step directions aren't available for this recipe. See the full recipe at the source →

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

96Calories
1 gProtein
0 gFat
23 gCarbs
What these numbers assume: 4 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Sugar1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated49
Onion1 medium (110g)44
Vinegar1 tbsp (15ml) distilled3
Salt1 tsp (6g)0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

By epicurious. Recipe from Open Recipes.

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. Apple cider vinegar + oniontop 15% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together469 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).

  2. Apple cider vinegar + sugartop 17% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together455 recipes

    Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).

  3. Sugar + oniontop 36% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together15,747 recipes

    Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).

Sugar and onion barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 15,747 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

Swap the onion

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (apple cider vinegar, sugar):

  1. Mustardfits better
  2. Beetrootfits better
  3. Capsicumfits better
  4. Onionthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against apple cider vinegar, sugar. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.