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Cucumber Mangoes

A pickled cucumber recipe with a spiced filling and vinegar brine.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
By Keokuk (Iowa). Westminster Presbyterian church · From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 16 ingredients
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Why it works: Celery and mustard are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 2% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 4,169 recipes. Both carry guaiacol, which smells smoky, sweet. The science ↓

Cucumber Mangoes

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare the cucumbers

  1. Soak forty large green cucumbers in brine for one week.

  2. Wash them in cold water.

  3. Scald them in weak vinegar.

  4. Let them lie in that another week.

Fill and pickle

  1. Cut them open lengthwise, take out the seeds, and fill with the following mixture: chopped cabbage seasoned with half a pint of mustard seed, one ounce of celery seed, half an ounce of all‑spice, one‑fourth ounce of mace, half an ounce of cloves, half an ounce of turmeric, half an ounce of black pepper, one ounce of cinnamon, one ounce of ginger, three tablespoonfuls or more of olive oil, one quarter of a pound of garlic or onions.

  2. Tie them together, place in a jar, and pour over them strong vinegar boiling hot, in which some brown sugar has been dissolved.

  3. Add horseradish and three or four red peppers to the jar.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

44Calories
1 gProtein
1 gFat
8 gCarbs

Counts 8 of 10 ingredients. The other 2 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 8 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Turmeric1 tsp ground (3g)9
Clove1 tsp ground (2g)7
Celery Seed1 stalk (40g)6
Black Pepper1 tsp ground (2.3g)6
Pepper1 tsp ground (2.3g)6
Garlic1 clove (3g)4
Mustard1 tsp (5g) yellow3
Vinegar1 tbsp (15ml) distilled3
Seednot in our table0
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.

By Keokuk (Iowa). Westminster Presbyterian church. Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

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.

  1. Celery + mustardtop 2% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together4,169 recipes

    Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).

  2. Mustard + turmerictop 3% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together2,279 recipes

    Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).

  3. Clove + turmerictop 4% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together1,876 recipes

    Shared aroma: eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal).

  4. Celery + turmerictop 4% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together1,356 recipes

    Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).

  5. Clove + peppertop 5% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together17,451 recipes

    Shared aroma: ethyl octanoate (fruity, wine).

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

What each ingredient does

Cucumbers (in the method)
Main vegetable that becomes the pickle, softening and taking on flavour during the brine and vinegar steps.
Vinegar
Provides the acidity that preserves and sharpens the pickle.
Brown sugar (in the method)
Adds sweetness that balances the sharp vinegar.
Mustard seed
Adds a sharp, pungent flavour to the cabbage filling.

The step that matters

Pouring the boiling vinegar over the cucumbers. The vinegar must be strong and very hot so it penetrates and preserves the cucumbers. Weak or lukewarm vinegar leaves the pickle open to spoilage.

Swap the mace

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (celery, mustard, clove, turmeric, pepper, garlic, vinegar):

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

Fit is the average pairing score against celery, mustard, clove, turmeric, pepper, garlic, vinegar. 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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