Why it works: Cinnamon and clove match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 14,189 recipes. Both carry ethyl cinnamate, which smells sweet, balsamic. The science ↓
Tomato Butter
Ingredients
Directions
Boil the tomatoes, sugar, vinegar, cinnamon, cloves, and allspice for three or four hours until quite thick, stirring often so it does not bubble.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
What these numbers assume: 6 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Sugar | 1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated | 49 |
| Tomato | 1 medium (123g) | 22 |
| Clove | 1 tsp ground (2g) | 7 |
| Cinnamon | 1 tsp ground (2.6g) | 6 |
| Allspice | 1 tsp ground (1.9g) | 5 |
| Vinegar | 1 tbsp (15ml) distilled | 3 |
One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures. See the original page.
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.
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Cinnamon + clovetop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together14,189 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl cinnamate (sweet, balsamic).
-
Clove + allspicetop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together7,874 recipes
Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).
-
Cinnamon + allspicetop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together5,536 recipes
Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).
-
Sugar + cinnamontop 10% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together30,779 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
-
Tomato + cinnamontop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,348 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
Sugar and cinnamon barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 30,779 recipes: they work on texture and structure more than aroma.
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Tomatoes
- Break down into a thick, spreadable pulp that forms the body of the butter.
- Sugar
- Adds sweetness and, as it concentrates, helps thicken the butter to a spreadable texture.
- Vinegar
- Adds acidity that brightens the flavor and balances the sweetness of the sugar.
- Cinnamon
- Contributes warm, aromatic spice flavor.
- Cloves
- Contributes strong, warm aromatic spice flavor.
The step that matters
Stirring during the long simmer. Sugar-rich tomato mixtures scorch and stick to the bottom of the pan as they thicken and concentrate. Frequent stirring keeps the bottom from burning and keeps the mixture from bubbling up unevenly.
Swap the tomato
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (sugar, vinegar, cinnamon, clove, allspice):
- Mustardfits better
- Horseradishfits better
- Capsicumfits better
- Tomatothe original
Fit is the average pairing score against sugar, vinegar, cinnamon, clove, allspice. 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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