Why it works: Allspice and pepper match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 5% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 6,395 recipes. Both carry estragole, which smells anise, licorice. The science ↓
Tomato Soy
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the tomatoes
Take a bushel of ripe tomatoes, slice them without skinning, layer them in a large tub with salt and onions, sprinkling salt between layers.
Let the layered tomatoes sit for three days, then transfer them to a large iron pot and boil from early morning until night, stirring constantly to prevent sticking and mashing.
Strain and season
Pass the mixture through a sieve, pressing to extract the liquid.
Add one ounce of clorves, a quarter pound of allspice, a quarter pound of whole black pepper, and a small wine glass of cayenne.
Let it boil slowly and constantly all day.
Cool and bottle
In the evening, transfer to a suitable vessel to cool; the next day, bottle and cork it well, and store in a cool place during warm weather; if it ferments, boil a second time.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
What these numbers assume: 5 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Onion | 1 medium (110g) | 44 |
| Black Pepper | 1 tsp ground (2.3g) | 6 |
| Cayenne | 1 tsp (1.8g) | 6 |
| Allspice | 1 tsp ground (1.9g) | 5 |
| Salt | 1 tsp (6g) | 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.
-
Allspice + peppertop 5% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together6,395 recipes
Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).
-
Pepper + oniontop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together68,474 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
-
Allspice + oniontop 13% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,270 recipes
Shared aroma: coumarin (sweet, hay).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Ripe tomatoes (in the method)
- Form the main body of the sauce, providing the bulk of its liquid and flavor.
- Salt
- Draws liquid out of the layered tomatoes and helps preserve the sauce.
- Onions
- Add savory flavor to the sauce as it layers and cooks with the tomatoes.
- Whole black pepper
- Adds pungent, warm spice that flavors the sauce during the long boil.
- Allspice
- Adds aromatic, warm spice notes that deepen the sauce's flavor.
The step that matters
Stirring during the long boil. Tomatoes are thick and sugary, so they scorch and stick to the bottom of the pot during a long boil. Constant stirring keeps the mixture moving and prevents burning.
Swap the onion
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (allspice, pepper):
- Capsicumfits better
- Carrotfits better
- Mustardfits better
- Onionthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against allspice, 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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