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Pickled Nasturtiums

Pickled nasturtium seeds preserved in a brine of salt, peppercorns, allspice, ginger, and vinegar.

From an old cookbook · modernised transcription
From a historical cookbook (Internet Archive) · 6 ingredients
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Why it works: Allspice and ginger match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 2,620 recipes. Both carry estragole, which smells anise, licorice. The science ↓

Pickled Nasturtiums

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare the seeds

  1. Gather nasturtium seeds before they harden.

  2. Soak the seeds in a saltwater solution overnight.

  3. Wash the seeds thoroughly and remove any yellow leaves.

Brine and pickle

  1. Place the cleaned seeds in a fresh brine strong enough to float an egg.

  2. Change the brine every two days for one week.

  3. Drain the seeds and pack them into jars or bottles.

  4. Soak black peppercorns, allspice berries, and ginger in vinegar.

  5. Pour the vinegar mixture over the seeds.

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.

  1. Allspice + gingertop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together2,620 recipes

    Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).

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

What each ingredient does

Nasturtium seeds
Form the pickled product itself, giving the main texture and peppery bite.
Coarse sea salt
Draws water out of the seeds and seasons them during the brining stage.
Black peppercorns
Contribute sharp, aromatic pepperiness that flavors the vinegar infusion.
Allspice berries
Add warm, clove-like aroma to the vinegar mixture.
Ginger
Adds warm, spicy aroma and a slight heat to the vinegar mixture.

The step that matters

Brine strength. The brine must be strong enough to float an egg so the seeds lose enough water and take on salt. A weak brine can leave seeds soft and prone to spoilage.

“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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