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Pickled Oysters

Pickled oysters are preserved in vinegar, salt, peppercorns, mace, and cloves.

From the Wikibooks Cookbook · 6 ingredients
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Why it works: Mace and clove are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 6% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 8,400 recipes. Both carry methyleugenol, which smells clove, spice. The science ↓

Pickled Oysters

Timeabout 10 minutes

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare and cook the oysters

  1. Drain off the liquor from the oysters, and wash them.

  2. Combine the oysters with the salt and vinegar; simmer them for about 10 minutes, discarding any scum that rises to the surface.

  3. Take out the oysters, leaving the liquid.

Pickle and pack

  1. Add the peppercorns, mace, and cloves to the oyster liquid, and boil for 5 minutes.

  2. Skim the liquid, and pour it over the oysters in the jar.

  3. Place the oysters in a jar.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

97Calories
10 gProtein
3 gFat
8 gCarbs

Counts 5 of 6 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 5 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Oyster6 medium (84g)81
Clove1 tsp ground (2g)7
Black Pepper1 tsp ground (2.3g)6
Vinegar1 tbsp (15ml) distilled3
Salt1 tsp (6g)0
Macenot in our table0

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.

  1. Mace + clovetop 6% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together8,400 recipes

    Shared aroma: methyleugenol (clove, spice).

  2. Vinegar + clovetop 15% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together10,386 recipes

    Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).

  3. Vinegar + macetop 25% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together4,415 recipes
  4. Oyster + macetop 26% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together1,910 recipes
  5. Oyster + vinegartop 29% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together1,024 recipes

    Shared aroma: acetic acid (sour, vinegar).

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

What each ingredient does

Oysters
Form the main body of the dish, becoming firm and tender when simmered.
Vinegar
Provides acidity that preserves the oysters and gives the pickled sharpness.
Salt
Seasons the oysters and helps draw out moisture during cooking.
Black peppercorns
Add a sharp, pungent aroma to the pickling liquid.
Mace
Contributes a warm, aromatic flavour to the pickling liquid.
Cloves
Add a strong, warm aroma to the pickling liquid.

The step that matters

Skimming the scum while simmering the oysters. Scum rising during simmering is protein and impurities released from the oysters; removing it keeps the liquid clear and the flavour clean.

Swap the mace

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (oyster, vinegar, clove):

  1. Allspicefits better
  2. Cinnamonfits better
  3. Tarragonfits better
  4. Macethe original

Fit is the average pairing score against oyster, vinegar, clove. 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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