Name: Indian Sandwiches
Ingredients: 12 walnuts; 2 sour apples; mayonnaise; white bread

Why it works: Apple and bread are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 14% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,790 recipes. Both carry 2,4-decadienal, which smells seaweed. The science ↓

Indian Sandwiches

Ingredients

12 walnuts
2 sour apples
mayonnaise
white bread

Directions

Chop the walnuts and sour apples together.
Season the mixture and mix it with mayonnaise.
Spread the mixture on thin slices of white bread.

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.

Apple + breadtop 14% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together1,790 recipes

Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
Walnut + appletop 15% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together1,051 recipes

Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
Walnut + breadtop 17% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together714 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-undecenal (sweet).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Walnuts: Add crunch and a toasty, slightly bitter note that contrasts with the sweetness of the filling.
Sour apples: Add moisture and bright acidity that cut through the richness of the mayonnaise.
Mayonnaise: Binds the chopped filling together and adds fat for a creamy texture.
White bread: Provides a soft, neutral base that carries the filling without overpowering it.