Why it works: Mustard and spinach match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 4% of all ingredient pairs, and 503 recipes mention both. Both carry trans-2-hexenal, which smells green, leafy. The science ↓
The recipe
Serves 2Ingredients
Directions
Method written by CompKitchen from the ingredient list. Not the original author's method, not kitchen-tested.
Heat the olive oil in a medium skillet over medium heat.
Add the diced onion and cook, stirring often, for about 4 minutes until softened.
Stir in the minced garlic and cook for 1 minute until fragrant.
Add the dried cranberries and cranberry juice. If you want extra moisture, add a splash of water (optional). Simmer for 2 minutes until the cranberries plump.
Stir in the zesty honey mustard until the cranberries and onion are evenly coated.
Add the spinach a handful at a time, tossing until fully wilted, about 2 minutes. Serve warm.
Explore the science
The flavor team
The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much aroma chemistry they share, and how many recipes mention both.
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Mustard + spinachtop 4% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together503 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-hexenal (green, leafy).
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Garlic + oniontop 1% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together29,030 recipes
Shared aroma: furaneol (caramel, strawberry).
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Garlic + spinachtop 3% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together2,433 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-hexanol (resin, flower).
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Olive + garlictop 3% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together23,449 recipes
Shared aroma: linalool (floral, citrus).
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Olive + spinachtop 4% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together2,700 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-undecenal (sweet).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
Flavor stand-ins for the onion
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (olive, garlic, honey, mustard, cranberry, spinach):
- Tomatobetter flavor fit
- Broccolibetter flavor fit
- Lettucebetter flavor fit
- Onionthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against olive, garlic, honey, mustard, cranberry, spinach. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes. This compares flavor only: it does not check the job the ingredient does in the dish (bulk, moisture, acidity, structure).
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