Shallot Sauce

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.

1. Pepper + lemontop 3% of all pairs
   Smell alikestrong
   Cooked together27,047 recipes

   Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).

2. Cider + vinegartop 6% of all pairs
   Smell alikemoderate
   Cooked together3,431 recipes

   Shared aroma: 4-ethyl-2-methoxyphenol (smoky, clove).

3. Onion + peppertop 11% of all pairs
   Smell alikemoderate
   Cooked together68,474 recipes

   Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).

4. Onion + vinegartop 14% of all pairs
   Smell alikemoderate
   Cooked together18,226 recipes

   Shared aroma: acetic acid (sour, vinegar).

5. Pepper + vinegartop 14% of all pairs
   Smell alikemoderate
   Cooked together27,814 recipes

   Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).

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

What each ingredient does

Young onions

Provide the sharp, fresh allium flavour that defines the sauce.

Cider vinegar

Adds acidity that sharpens the flavour and balances the sauce.

Lemon juice

Adds bright acidity that lifts the sauce and softens the bite of raw onion.

Swap the onion

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (pepper, cider, vinegar, lemon):

1. Capsicumfits better
2. Mustardfits better
3. Shallotfits better
4. Onionthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against pepper, cider, vinegar, lemon. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.