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 ↓
Cucumbers for Winter
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Slice cucumbers thinly, as for serving.
Sprinkle with coarse sea salt and let stand for several hours to allow for shrinkage.
Drain the cucumbers.
Pack and store
Pack the cucumbers tightly into self-sealing jars.
Cover the cucumbers with cider vinegar.
Seal the jars and store them in a cool, dark place.
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 pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together3,431 recipes
Shared aroma: 4-ethyl-2-methoxyphenol (smoky, clove).
-
Cucumber + vinegartop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,734 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-methylbutyl acetate (fruit).
-
Cucumber + cidertop 16% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together572 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 main body and crunch of the pickles.
- Cider vinegar
- Adds acidity that preserves the cucumbers and gives them their tangy flavour.
- Coarse sea salt
- Draws water out of the cucumbers, causing shrinkage and a firmer texture.
The step that matters
Salting and draining the cucumbers. Salt draws water out of the slices through osmosis. Letting them stand for several hours and then draining well removes excess moisture, so the pickles stay firm and the vinegar is not diluted in the jars.
Swap the cucumber
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (cider, vinegar):
- Mustardfits better
- Cucumberthe original
- Capsicumfits less well
- Shallotfits less well
Fit is the average pairing score against cider, vinegar. 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 pickled cucumbers recipes
You might also like
Raspberry Vinegar214 recipes
Cucumber Pickles25 recipes
Sugar Vinegar20 recipes
Apple Cider11 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.