Why it works: Clove and allspice 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 ↓
Pepper Catsup
Ingredients
Directions
Make the pulp
Take 50 pods of large red peppers with the seeds.
Add 1 pint vinegar and boil until the pulp will mash through a sieve.
Season, boil and bottle
Add a second pint vinegar, 2 spoons sugar, cloves, mace, allspice, onions, and salt.
Put all in a kettle and boil to the proper consistency.
Run through the sieve again, bottle, and seal.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
Counts 6 of 7 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.
What these numbers assume: 6 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Sugar | 1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated | 49 |
| Clove | 1 tsp ground (2g) | 7 |
| Pepper | 1 tsp ground (2.3g) | 6 |
| Allspice | 1 tsp ground (1.9g) | 5 |
| Vinegar | 1 tbsp (15ml) distilled | 3 |
| Salt | 1 tsp (6g) | 0 |
| Mace | not in our table | 0 |
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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Clove + allspicetop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together7,874 recipes
Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).
-
Pepper + clovetop 5% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together17,451 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl octanoate (fruity, wine).
-
Pepper + allspicetop 5% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together6,395 recipes
Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).
-
Clove + macetop 6% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together8,400 recipes
Shared aroma: methyleugenol (clove, spice).
-
Mace + allspicetop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together3,189 recipes
Shared aroma: methyleugenol (clove, spice).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Large red peppers
- Provides the pulp that becomes the thick body of the ketchup.
- Vinegar
- Adds sharp acidity and softens the peppers so they can be boiled and sieved.
- Sugar
- Adds sweetness that balances the sharpness of the vinegar.
The step that matters
Boil to the proper consistency. Water must evaporate for the ketchup to thicken, but boiling too long can scorch the bottom of the kettle and darken the flavor. Stir often and stop when it coats a spoon.
Swap the mace
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (vinegar, pepper, sugar, clove, allspice):
- Cinnamonfits better
- Nutmegfits better
- Cardamomfits better
- Macethe original
Fit is the average pairing score against vinegar, pepper, sugar, 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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