Name: Escabeche I
Ingredients: Three to four pounds of King fish cleaned and sliced about one inch thick.; Two to two and half pounds of Spanish or Bermuda onions peeled and thinly sliced.; The juice of two limes.; Seasoned flour for dredging.; Two cups of olive oil.; One cup of vinegar.; Four bay leaves.; Twelve pepper corns.; One teaspoon of salt.; Three to four tablespoons of crushed garlic. (Note: This is optional and can be added to the onion mixture during the cooking cycle or after this is up to you)

Why it works: Lime and pepper match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 2% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 3,491 recipes. Both carry beta-phellandrene, which smells minty, terpene. The science ↓

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.

Lime + peppertop 2% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together3,491 recipes

Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
Lime + corntop 5% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together773 recipes

Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).
Lime + olivetop 8% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together3,621 recipes

Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).
Onion + olivetop 8% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together29,779 recipes

Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
Olive + corntop 9% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together2,502 recipes

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

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

What each ingredient does

King fish: Forms the main body of the dish, holding its shape through frying and marinating.
Onions: Provide sweetness and bulk, softening as they simmer in the oil and vinegar.
Vinegar: Adds acidity that tenderizes and sharpens the flavor of the fish and onions.
Olive oil: Carries flavor and moisture, and fries the fish to a golden crust.
Seasoned flour: Forms a coating that browns during frying and helps the fish keep its shape.

The step that matters

Frying the floured fish. Fish fried over high heat can scorch on the outside before cooking through, and dredging that is not dry or evenly coated will spatter or break apart. Keep the heat moderate and fry in small batches.

Swap the onion

The recipe marks onion as optional. How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (fish, lime, flour, olive, vinegar, pepper, corn):

Capsicumfits better
Lettucefits better
Tomatofits better
Onionthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against fish, lime, flour, olive, vinegar, pepper, corn. 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.

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Flour	1 cup (125g) all-purpose	455
Salmon	100g cooked	208
Olive Oil	1 tbsp (14g)	119
Corn	1/2 cup kernels (82g)	77
Onion	1 medium (110g)	44
Lime	juice of 1 lime (44ml)	11
Black Pepper	1 tsp ground (2.3g)	6
Garlic	1 clove (3g)	4
Vinegar	1 tbsp (15ml) distilled	3
Bay Leaf	1 leaf (0.6g)	2
Salt	1 tsp (6g)	0

Escabeche I

Escabeche I

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare the onions

Prepare and fry the fish

Layer and marinate

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)