Why it works: Shallot and mustard match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 859 recipes. Both carry eucalyptol, which smells eucalyptus, herbal. The science ↓
Hot Pickle
Ingredients
Directions
Make the pickle liquid
Boil the vinegar with salt, shallots or garlic, ginger, white pepper, yellow mustard seed, and cayenne pepper.
Pour the hot mixture into a 4-quart jar.
Add allspice to the jar.
Add vegetables or fruit
When the mixture is cold, add fresh vegetables or fruit as available.
Replenish the pickle with the same mixture as it is used.
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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Shallot + mustardtop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together859 recipes
Shared aroma: eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal).
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Ginger + allspicetop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together2,620 recipes
Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).
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Shallot + asparagustop 2% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together137 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
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Mustard + allspicetop 2% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together1,928 recipes
Shared aroma: methyleugenol (clove, spice).
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Mustard + asparagustop 4% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together213 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Vinegar
- Provides the acidity that preserves the vegetables and gives the pickle its sharp flavour.
- Coarse sea salt
- Seasons the brine and draws moisture from produce, helping it stay firm and flavourful.
- Shallots or garlic
- Adds savoury, pungent flavour that mellows as the pickle sits.
- Ginger
- Adds warm, aromatic heat that carries through the brine.
- Yellow mustard seed
- Contributes a sharp, pungent bite to the brine.
- Fresh vegetables or fruit
- Absorb the seasoned vinegar brine, taking on its acidity, salt and spice.
The step that matters
When the mixture is cold, add fresh vegetables or fruit. Adding produce to hot brine would cook it and soften its texture. Cooling the liquid first keeps the vegetables or fruit crisp and firm while they absorb the seasoning.
Swap the white pepper
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (vinegar, shallot, ginger, mustard, pepper, allspice, asparagus):
- Tarragonfits better
- Turmericfits better
- Clovefits better
- White pepperthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against vinegar, shallot, ginger, mustard, pepper, allspice, asparagus. 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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