Why it works: Almond and walnut match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 2% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 993 recipes. Both carry 2,4-decadienal, which smells seaweed. The science ↓
Nut Salad
Ingredients
Directions
Combine the chopped hickory nuts, almonds, English walnuts, celery, pickles, raisins, and hard-boiled eggs in a large bowl. Mix well to combine all ingredients.
Just before serving, cover the salad with boiled dressing.
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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Almond + walnuttop 2% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together993 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
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Almond + raisintop 2% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,781 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonanone (fruity, floral).
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Walnut + celerytop 6% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together852 recipes
Shared aroma: alpha-pinene (pine, turpentine).
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Nuts + almondtop 6% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together394 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-pentanedione (butter, sweet).
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Nuts + walnuttop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together284 recipes
Shared aroma: alpha-pinene (pine, turpentine).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Hickory nuts
- Provide crunch and a rich, earthy nut flavor.
- Almonds
- Add crunchy texture and a mild, sweet nuttiness.
- English walnuts
- Contribute crunch and a slightly bitter, earthy nut flavor.
- Hard-boiled eggs
- Add body and softness that bind the salad's mixed textures.
- Celery
- Adds crisp texture and fresh, slightly savory flavor.
- Pickles
- Add acidity and tang that brighten the rich nuts and dressing.
Swap the celery
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (nuts, almond, walnut, raisin, egg):
- Cinnamonfits better
- Nutmegfits better
- Capersfits better
- Celerythe original
Fit is the average pairing score against nuts, almond, walnut, raisin, egg. 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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