Why it works: Cucumber and dill match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 530 recipes. Both carry 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells earthy, pea. The science ↓
Cucumber Pickle
Ingredients
Directions
The book gives no cooking times; the times in the steps were added in transcription, so check for doneness rather than trusting the clock.
Brine the cucumbers
Slice cucumbers and place them in a large jar.
Dissolve salt in water and pour the salt water over the cucumbers.
Let the cucumbers sit for 24 hours.
Drain the cucumbers.
Make the pickling liquid
In a pot, combine vinegar, sugar, mustard seeds, dill seeds, and black peppercorns.
Bring the mixture to a boil and pour the hot mixture over the cucumbers in the jar.
Store
Seal the jar and store in a cool place for at least 2 weeks before using.
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.
-
Cucumber + dilltop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together530 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
-
Mustard + dilltop 2% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together560 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
-
Cucumber + mustardtop 3% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together2,281 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
-
Vinegar + mustardtop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together14,067 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
-
Cucumber + vinegartop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,734 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-methylbutyl acetate (fruit).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Cucumbers
- Provide the crisp, watery body that the pickle is built around.
- Salt
- Draws water out of the cucumbers and helps them stay firm during brining.
- Vinegar
- Adds the sharp acidity that makes the pickle sour and preserves it.
- Sugar
- Balances the sourness of the vinegar with a touch of sweetness.
- Mustard seeds
- Contribute a pungent, aromatic flavour to the brine.
- Dill seeds
- Add a warm, herbal aroma characteristic of dill pickles.
The step that matters
Dissolving the salt and draining before pickling. Salt draws water out of the cucumbers, so the brine must be fully dissolved for even action. Draining removes excess salty liquid so the vinegar mixture is not diluted and the pickles stay crisp rather than soft.
Swap the dill
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (cucumber, vinegar, sugar, mustard):
- Tarragonfits better
- Capersfits about as well
- Dillthe original
- Allspicefits less well
Fit is the average pairing score against cucumber, vinegar, sugar, mustard. 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.
More cucumber pickles recipes
You might also like
Fritters56 recipes
Crisp Crackers7 recipesThe free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.