Why it works: Mustard and celery are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 2% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 4,169 recipes. Both carry guaiacol, which smells smoky, sweet. The science ↓
Green Mango Relish
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the vegetables
Seed and chop green and red peppers, mangos and onions.
Pour boiling water over them and drain.
Cover with cold water in large kettle. Bring to boil and drain.
Make the relish
Combine vinegar, sugar, salt, celery seed and mustard seed and bring to a boil.
Add to vegetable mixture and boil for 1 minute.
Seal and process in boiling water bath for 10 minutes.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
Counts 8 of 9 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.
What these numbers assume: 8 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Mango | 1 cup diced (165g) | 99 |
| Sugar | 1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated | 49 |
| Onion | 1 medium (110g) | 44 |
| Pepper | 1 tsp ground (2.3g) | 6 |
| Celery Seed | 1 stalk (40g) | 6 |
| Vinegar | 1 tbsp (15ml) distilled | 3 |
| Mustard | 1 tsp (5g) yellow | 3 |
| Salt | 1 tsp (6g) | 0 |
| Seed | not in our table | 0 |
One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.
Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.
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.
-
Mustard + celerytop 2% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,169 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
-
Pepper + celerytop 5% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together16,012 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
-
Onion + mustardtop 6% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together9,259 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
-
Pepper + mangotop 6% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together471 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
-
Onion + celerytop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together18,518 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Green mangos
- Provides the tart, fruity body that gives the relish its character.
- Vinegar
- Adds acidity that gives the relish its sharp flavour and helps preserve it.
- Sugar
- Balances the acidity with sweetness and helps preserve the relish.
- Onions
- Contribute savoury depth and bulk to the chopped vegetable mixture.
The step that matters
Boiling the vegetables in water and draining them. Blanching and draining the chopped vegetables removes excess water and some raw sharpness, so the relish stays firm and does not become watery in the jar.
Swap the mango
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (pepper, onion, vinegar, sugar, mustard, celery):
- Limefits better
- Lemonfits better
- Avocadofits better
- Mangothe original
Fit is the average pairing score against pepper, onion, vinegar, sugar, mustard, celery. 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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