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 ↓
Cherries, Pickled
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the cherries
Leave 1 inch of the stalks on the cherries and pack them lightly in jars.
Pickle
Boil the vinegar and sugar together, then pour it hot over the fruit.
When the mixture is cold, cover the jars with paper.
Let the jars stand in a cool place for 1 week.
Drain off the vinegar, boil it again, skim well, and pour it hot over the fruit.
When cold, cover the jars closely and keep in a cool, dry place.
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).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Cherries
- Provide the fruit that is preserved and flavoured by the pickling liquid.
- Vinegar
- Acidity that preserves the fruit and gives the pickle its sharp flavour.
- Sugar
- Sweetness that balances the sharpness of the vinegar.
The step that matters
Draining, reboiling and skimming the vinegar. Reboiling the drained vinegar and skimming off foam removes impurities and keeps the pickle clear. Pouring it hot over the fruit helps the liquid penetrate and seal the jar.
“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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