Name: Apple Chutney
Ingredients: 2 teacupfuls chopped apples; 2 teacupfuls chopped onions; ¼ teacupful chopped red or green peppers; 1 pint vinegar; 2 teaspoons salt

Why it works: Onion and pepper are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 11% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 68,474 recipes. Both carry 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells earthy, pea. The science ↓

Apple Chutney

Ingredients

Directions

Combine the chopped apples, onions, and peppers in a bowl.
Heat the vinegar and salt in a saucepan until hot.
Pour the hot vinegar mixture over the chopped ingredients.

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.

Onion + peppertop 11% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together68,474 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
Onion + vinegartop 14% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together18,226 recipes

Shared aroma: acetic acid (sour, vinegar).
Pepper + vinegartop 14% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together27,814 recipes

Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
Apple + vinegartop 16% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together1,884 recipes

Shared aroma: isoamyl acetate (banana, fruity).
Apple + peppertop 18% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together3,026 recipes

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

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

What each ingredient does

Apples: Gives the chutney its main body and fruity sweetness.
Onions: Adds savoury depth and sharpness that mellows as they soften.
Red or green peppers: Adds bulk, a fresh bell pepper flavour and a little texture.
Vinegar: Adds acidity that sharpens the flavours and helps preserve the mixture.