Why it works: Allspice and clove match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 7,874 recipes. Both carry estragole, which smells anise, licorice. The science ↓
Pickled Oysters
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the oysters
Drain the oysters and remove them from their shells, being careful not to bruise them.
Strain the oyster liquor into a china-lined kettle and add an equal amount of boiling water.
Bring the mixture to a boil and add the oysters a few at a time. Boil until the beard curls and the oyster feels firm between your fingers.
Lay the oysters on platters to cool completely, turning them to cool both sides.
Make the pickling liquor
Once cooled, wash out the kettle and strain 1 quart of the liquor back into it.
Add 1 heaping teaspoon allspice, 1 level teaspoon cloves, a small piece of red pepper, ¼ teaspoon salt, and 6 leaves of mace.
Simmer for about 30 minutes to flavor the liquor with the spices.
Pickle and finish
In a stone jar, layer the cooled oysters with the sliced lemon, lady-finger pepper (seeds removed), remaining cloves, allspice, and mace.
Once the liquor is flavored, remove it from the heat, add the vinegar, and heat again.
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.
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Allspice + clovetop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together7,874 recipes
Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).
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Lemon + peppertop 3% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together27,047 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
-
Clove + peppertop 5% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together17,451 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl octanoate (fruity, wine).
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Allspice + peppertop 5% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together6,395 recipes
Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).
-
Allspice + lemontop 6% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together2,083 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Oysters
- Main ingredient; gentle poaching firms the flesh so it holds its shape in the pickle.
- Vinegar
- Provides acidity that preserves the oysters and gives the pickle its sharp flavor.
- Cloves
- Adds warm, aromatic spice flavor to the pickling liquor.
- Allspice
- Adds warm, aromatic spice flavor to the pickling liquor.
- Mace
- Adds a delicate, aromatic spice flavor to the pickling liquor.
The step that matters
Boil the oysters only until the beard curls. Oysters are delicate and toughen quickly when overcooked. Stopping at the curled beard and firm feel keeps them tender while setting the flesh enough to hold its shape in the pickle.
Swap the mace
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (oyster, allspice, lemon, clove, vinegar, pepper):
- Marjoramfits better
- Thymefits better
- Tarragonfits better
- Macethe original
Fit is the average pairing score against oyster, allspice, lemon, clove, vinegar, 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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