Name: Cayenne Hot Sauce
Ingredients: ¾ cup malt vinegar; ¼ cup cayenne pepper; 1 tbsp salt

Why it works: Vinegar and pepper are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 14% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 27,814 recipes. Both carry 4'-methylacetophenone, which smells bitter almond. The science ↓

Cayenne Hot Sauce

Ingredients

¾ cup malt vinegar
¼ cup cayenne pepper
1 tbsp salt

Directions

Combine all ingredients.
Store indefinitely at room temperature in a squirt bottle.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

11Calories

0 gProtein

0 gFat

1 gCarbs

Counts 3 of 4 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 3 portions

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Chili	1 tsp (2.7g)	8
Vinegar	1 tbsp (15ml) distilled	3
Salt	1 tsp (6g)	0
Malt	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.

Recipe from the Wikibooks Cookbook.

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.

Vinegar + peppertop 14% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together27,814 recipes

Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
Malt + vinegartop 17% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together365 recipes

Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
Malt + peppertop 27% of all pairs

Smell alikelow

Cooked together189 recipes

Shared aroma: 4-ethyl-2-methoxyphenol (smoky, clove).

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

What each ingredient does

Malt vinegar: Provides acidity that sharpens flavor and helps keep the sauce stable.
Cayenne pepper: Supplies the heat and characteristic flavor of the sauce.

“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.