Why it works: Pepper and vinegar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 14% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 27,814 recipes. Both carry 4'-methylacetophenone, which smells bitter almond. The science ↓
Pepper Hash
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the peppers
Chop the red peppers using a food chopper.
Cover the chopped peppers with boiling water.
Let them stand for five minutes.
Drain the peppers.
Cover the peppers again with boiling water.
Drain the peppers again.
Cook and seal
Add the vinegar, sugar, and salt to the peppers.
Cook the mixture together for 15 minutes.
Seal while hot.
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.
-
Pepper + vinegartop 14% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together27,814 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
-
Vinegar + sugartop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together20,806 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
-
Pepper + sugartop 32% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together19,401 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Pepper and sugar barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 19,401 recipes: they work on texture and structure more than aroma.
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Red peppers
- Provide the main bulk and sweet, mildly bitter vegetable flavor of the relish.
- Vinegar
- Provides acidity that gives the hash its sharp, tangy flavor and helps preserve it.
- Sugar
- Adds sweetness that balances the acidity of the vinegar.
- Salt
- Seasons the mixture and draws out moisture from the peppers.
The step that matters
Drain the peppers thoroughly before adding vinegar. Removing the boiling water lets the peppers absorb the vinegar and sugar rather than diluting the liquid, so the cooked hash has a concentrated, well-balanced flavor.
“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.
You might also like
Tomato Soup526 recipes
Brown Bread461 recipes
Mutton Broth292 recipes
Yorkshire Pudding264 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.