Why it works: Sage and marjoram match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 507 recipes. Both carry 2-hexenal, which smells green, leafy. The science ↓
Spiced Vinegar
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Combine the herbs in a clean jar.
Pour the cider vinegar over the herbs.
Infuse and strain
Seal the jar and let it sit for at least 2 weeks to extract the flavors.
Strain the vinegar before using.
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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Sage + marjoramtop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together507 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-hexenal (green, leafy).
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Marjoram + celerytop 4% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together615 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
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Sage + celerytop 5% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together723 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
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Mint + marjoramtop 6% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together94 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
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Mint + sagetop 6% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together138 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
- Cider vinegar
- Acidic liquid that extracts and carries the flavor of the herbs and seeds.
- Fresh mint
- Adds a cool, aromatic herbal flavor to the vinegar.
- Fresh sage
- Contributes an earthy, savory herbal aroma to the vinegar.
- Fresh sweet marjoram
- Adds a mild, sweet herbal note to the infused vinegar.
- Celery seed
- Contributes a warm, savory aroma that is released slowly into the vinegar.
The step that matters
Letting the vinegar infuse. Flavor is extracted gradually over time, so steeping for at least 2 weeks is needed. Sealing the jar keeps the herbs submerged and the aromas from escaping, giving a fuller flavor.
Swap the mint
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (cider, vinegar, sage, marjoram, celery):
- Thymefits better
- Tarragonfits better
- Rosemaryfits better
- Mintthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against cider, vinegar, sage, marjoram, celery. 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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