Why it works: Allspice and clove match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 7,874 recipes. Both carry estragole, which smells anise, licorice. The science ↓
Martynia Pickle
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the pods
Put the young pods in strong brine for a week or ten days, then take them out and wash them clean in fresh water.
After this put them in vinegar to soak out the salt and weedy taste they would otherwise have.
They should remain in this vinegar two weeks; then take them out and drain them well, then put them in a jar with the following.
Pickle
Bruise the allspice and cloves in a mortar, slice the onions and horseradish, then boil all in vinegar and pour over the prepared martynias.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
What these numbers assume: 6 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Sugar | 1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated | 49 |
| Onion | 1 medium (110g) | 44 |
| Chili | 1 tsp (2.7g) | 8 |
| Clove | 1 tsp ground (2g) | 7 |
| 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.
-
Allspice + clovetop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together7,874 recipes
Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).
-
Clove + peppertop 5% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together17,451 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl octanoate (fruity, wine).
-
Allspice + peppertop 5% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together6,395 recipes
Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).
-
Onion + peppertop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together68,474 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
-
Clove + oniontop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together16,901 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonanone (fruity, floral).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Vinegar
- Acidic liquid that preserves the pods and gives the pickle its sharp tang.
- Brown sugar
- Adds sweetness that balances the sharpness of the vinegar.
- Allspice
- Contributes warm, aromatic spice flavour to the pickling liquid.
- Cloves
- Adds strong, warm aroma to the pickling liquid.
- Onions
- Add savoury flavour and aroma to the pickling liquid.
- Red pepper
- Adds heat and a pungent bite to the pickle.
The step that matters
Soaking the pods in vinegar for two weeks. Brined pods are very salty and have a harsh taste. A long soak in vinegar draws out the excess salt and weedy flavour, so rushing this step leaves the pickle salty and unpleasant.
Swap the onion
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (vinegar, sugar, allspice, clove, pepper):
- Mustardfits better
- Capsicumfits better
- Horseradishfits better
- Onionthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against vinegar, sugar, allspice, clove, pepper. 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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