Why it works: Pepper and clove match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 5% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 17,451 recipes. Both carry ethyl octanoate, which smells fruity, wine. The science ↓
Philadelphia, Pa
Ingredients
Directions
Procure any number you may desire of the finest large oysters. Wash them well and lay on a sieve to drain. Strain the liquor through a fine bag, and put in a porcelain kettle; add salt, let it boil and skim, then put in your oysters; let them only plump up, when skim out immediately, placing separately on dishes until quite cold. Take enough of the liquor to cover them, add to it a blade of mace, a dozen or more of whole pepper corns, and cloves, and a pt. of clear cider vinegar to 2 pts. of liquor. Put the cold oysters in a deep vessel, and pour the liquor over boiling. Let stand twenty-four hours.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
Counts 3 of 4 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.
What these numbers assume: 3 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Clove | 1 tsp ground (2g) | 7 |
| Black Pepper | 1 tsp ground (2.3g) | 6 |
| 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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Pepper + clovetop 5% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together17,451 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl octanoate (fruity, wine).
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Mace + clovetop 6% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together8,400 recipes
Shared aroma: methyleugenol (clove, spice).
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Mace + peppertop 16% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together12,257 recipes
Shared aroma: myristicin (spice, warm).
Mace and pepper barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 12,257 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
Swap the mace
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (pepper, clove):
- Allspicefits better
- Cinnamonfits better
- Cardamomfits better
- Macethe original
Fit is the average pairing score against pepper, clove. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.
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