Why it works: Cider and vinegar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 6% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 3,431 recipes. Both carry 4-ethyl-2-methoxyphenol, which smells smoky, clove. The science ↓
Sour Cucumber Pickles
300 picklesIngredients
Directions
Prepare the cucumbers
Place even-sized cucumbers in a brine strong enough to bring an egg to the surface.
Let the cucumbers stand for 2 days and nights.
Wipe the cucumbers dry and pack them in glass jars.
Make the pickling liquid and pour
For 300 pickles, add 1 gallon cider vinegar, 2 large onions sliced fine, several sticks of cinnamon, 1 pound sugar, 1 tablespoon powdered alum, and 5 cents' worth of mixed spices.
Heat the vinegar and spices.
Pour the hot mixture over the pickles.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
Counts 4 of 5 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.
What these numbers assume: 4 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Sugar | 1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated | 49 |
| Onion | 1 medium (110g) | 44 |
| Cinnamon | 1 tsp ground (2.6g) | 6 |
| Vinegar | 1 tbsp (15ml) distilled | 3 |
| Cider | 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.
-
Cider + vinegartop 6% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together3,431 recipes
Shared aroma: 4-ethyl-2-methoxyphenol (smoky, clove).
-
Sugar + cinnamontop 10% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together30,779 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
-
Vinegar + oniontop 14% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together18,226 recipes
Shared aroma: acetic acid (sour, vinegar).
-
Vinegar + sugartop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together20,806 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
-
Cider + cinnamontop 16% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together1,497 recipes
Shared aroma: 4-ethyl-2-methoxyphenol (smoky, clove).
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
- Cider vinegar
- Provides the acidity that preserves the cucumbers and gives the pickle its sharp flavour.
- Sugar
- Balances the sharpness of the vinegar and adds sweetness to the finished pickles.
- Powdered alum
- Helps the cucumbers stay firm and crisp during pickling.
- Onions
- Add savoury flavour and aroma that blend into the pickling liquid.
The step that matters
Brine the cucumbers until an egg floats. The brine must be strong enough to draw water out of the cucumbers and firm them. If it is too weak, the cucumbers stay soft and can spoil during the long stand.
Swap the onion
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (cider, vinegar, sugar, cinnamon):
- Mustardfits better
- Capsicumfits better
- Cucumberfits better
- Onionthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against cider, vinegar, sugar, cinnamon. 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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