Name: Red-pepper Catsup
Ingredients: red peppers; cider vinegar

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 ↓

Red-pepper Catsup

Ingredients

red peppers
cider vinegar

Directions

Cut up the red peppers and place them in a preserving kettle until full.
Cover the peppers with cider vinegar and boil until they break down.
Remove from heat and let the sauce cool.
Rub the sauce through a wire sieve.
Store in large-mouthed bottles or jars.

Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

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.

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 pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together3,431 recipes

Shared aroma: 4-ethyl-2-methoxyphenol (smoky, clove).
Pepper + vinegartop 14% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together27,814 recipes

Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
Pepper + cidertop 20% of all pairs

Smell alikelow

Cooked together2,234 recipes

Shared aroma: ethyl 2-methylbutyrate (fruity, apple).