Why it works: Shallot and capers match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 405 recipes. Both carry coumarin, which smells sweet, hay. The science ↓
Caper Sauce
Ingredients
Directions
In a pan, combine brown sauce, vinegar, essence of anchovy, mignonette pepper, glaze, and shallot.
Bring to a boil, then skim off any foam.
Add lemon juice and capers, stir well, and serve.
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.
Photo for illustrative purposes only · Contact us to use it
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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Shallot + caperstop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together405 recipes
Shared aroma: coumarin (sweet, hay).
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Sauce + anchovytop 2% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,057 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
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Pepper + lemontop 3% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together27,047 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
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Lemon + caperstop 5% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together1,222 recipes
Shared aroma: coumarin (sweet, hay).
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Shallot + lemontop 6% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together2,523 recipes
Shared aroma: eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Brown sauce
- Forms the base of the sauce, providing body and savoury depth.
- Glaze
- Adds body and gloss to the sauce, with savoury richness.
- Vinegar
- Adds acidity that brightens the sauce and balances its richness.
- French capers
- Add a sharp, briny bite that stands out against the rich base.
The step that matters
Skim off any foam after the boil. Foam rising during boiling carries impurities and proteins that can cloud the sauce and taste bitter if left in, so skimming keeps the sauce clean and smooth.
Swap the lemon
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (sauce, vinegar, anchovy, pepper, shallot, capers):
- Lemonthe original
- Limefits about as well
- Avocadofits less well
- Cherryfits less well
Fit is the average pairing score against sauce, vinegar, anchovy, pepper, shallot, capers. 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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