Name: Mulling Spice with Anise
Yield: 6 cups (900 g/2.0 lb)
Ingredients: 2 cups (320 g/11 oz) dried orange peel; 2 cups (250 g/8.8 oz) broken cinnamon sticks; 1 cup (125 g/4.4 oz) whole allspice berries; 1 cup (125 g/4.4 oz) whole cloves; 4 broken star anise

Why it works: Allspice and star anise share more aroma than cooks usually use. They rank in the top 4% of all ingredient pairs, and 30 recipes mention both. Both carry estragole, which smells anise, licorice. The science ↓

The recipe

6 cups (900 g/2.0 lb)

Ingredients

2 cups (320 g/11 oz) dried orange peel
2 cups (250 g/8.8 oz) broken cinnamon sticks
1 cup (125 g/4.4 oz) whole allspice berries
1 cup (125 g/4.4 oz) whole cloves
4 broken star anise

Directions

Mix the ingredients together well.
Store in a closed jar.

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 aroma chemistry they share, and how many recipes mention both.

Allspice + star anisetop 4% of all pairs

Aroma overlapstrong

Mentioned together30 recipes

Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).
Cinnamon + clovetop 1% of all pairs

Aroma overlapstrong

Mentioned together14,027 recipes

Shared aroma: ethyl cinnamate (sweet, balsamic).
Allspice + clovetop 1% of all pairs

Aroma overlapstrong

Mentioned together7,711 recipes

Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).
Cinnamon + star anisetop 1% of all pairs

Aroma overlapstrong

Mentioned together312 recipes

Shared aroma: 4-methoxybenzaldehyde (sweet, anise).
Cinnamon + allspicetop 1% of all pairs

Aroma overlapstrong

Mentioned together5,536 recipes

Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).

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

What each ingredient does

Dried orange peel: Adds a bright citrus aroma that fills the blend.
Cinnamon sticks: Provides a warm, sweet aroma as its oils are released.
Allspice berries: Contributes a warm, peppery aroma with notes of clove and cinnamon.
Cloves: Gives a strong, pungent aroma that dominates the blend.
Star anise: Adds a sweet, licorice-like aroma.

“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.