Why it works: Vinegar and sugar are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 15% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 20,806 recipes. Both carry beta-damascenone, which smells apple, rose. The science ↓
Apple Dumplings
Ingredients
Directions
Simmer the vinegar, sugar, and apples gently until reduced to a pulp.
Stir in the remaining ingredients and mix well.
Transfer the mixture to a basin, cover it, and stir 2 or 3 times daily for 1 week.
After a week, bottle the mixture, cork it securely, and store for use.
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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Vinegar + sugartop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together20,806 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
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Vinegar + appletop 16% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,884 recipes
Shared aroma: isoamyl acetate (banana, fruity).
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Sugar + appletop 18% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together16,478 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).
Sugar and apple barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 16,478 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
Swap the apple
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (vinegar, sugar):
- Vanillafits better
- Strawberryfits better
- Pineapplefits about as well
- Applethe original
Fit is the average pairing score against vinegar, sugar. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.
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