Perfect Pairings & Recipes for
Blood Orange

Unlock the perfect flavour pairings for blood orange according to data science. Explore unique recipes and discover the hidden mathematics of flavour.
Blood orange is marked by the unmistakable taste of grapefruit and raspberry, woven with delicate hints of neroli, blossom, and bergamot, contributing remarkable depth. The key to an exceptional combination lies in appreciating how these accents harmonise and interact.
To illuminate these harmonies, we embarked on an ambitious journey, analysing thousands of ingredients. Each was meticulously deconstructed across 150 distinct flavour dimensions, allowing us to pinpoint precisely which notes complement in both classic and unexpected ways. Our findings reveal, for instance, how stevia's saccharine tones can lift blood orange, or how caster sugar's saccharine notes create an unexpectedly harmonious bridge with the crisp aroma.
Flavour Profile Of Blood Orange Across 150 Dimensions Of Flavour
Flavour wheel chart showing the dominant flavour notes of Blood orange: Grapefruit, Raspberry, Neroli, Passionfruit, Bergamot, Blossom, Resinous, Blackberry, Cherry, Hibiscus, Apricot, Astringent, Honeyed, Ficus, Peach, Malic, Jasmine, Cedar, Molasses, Pear, Lychee, Pineapple, Rose, Sugary, Mango, Acetic, Elderflower, Lavender, Caramel, Maple, Balsam, Raisin, Tea-Like, Basil, Rosemary, Grassy, Poivre, Tannic, Pine, Glutamic
An ingredient's flavour profile is determined by its core characteristics (e.g. acidic, nectarous, and floral) enhanced by layers of subtle aroma notes (outer bars). When pairing ingredients, aim for a mix of core traits to build balance, and select complementary aroma notes to create harmony.
Unlocking Flavour Combinations
To understand how flavour notes harmonise, we analysed more than 50,000 popular ingredient combinations. By exploring these pairings, we identified specific flavour notes that frequently occur together, indicating they share a harmonious relationship.
The Flavours That Harmonise With Grapefruit Notes
Strength of Association Between Flavours
The flavours most associated with grapefruit notes are: Gentian, Chamomile, Limestone, Sugary, Pear, Honey, Rose, Plum, Raspberry, Oceanic, Fishy, Blackberry, Almond, Malic, Ficus.
Our analysis reveals a strong connection between grapefruit and sugar flavours. Since blood orange has a distinct grapefruity flavour, try pairing it with the sugary flavours of caster sugar.
The recipes below provide inspiration for pairing blood orange with caster sugar.
Harmonious Flavours Of Blood Orange
Just as our ingredient analysis revealed that grapefruit and gentian notes are harmonious, we can identify the full profile of flavours that harmonise with each of the flavour notes present in blood orange. For instance, the berry-like notes of blood orange are strongly associated with beefy and ironny notes.
The accents associated with the various notes of blood orange can be seen highlighted in the pink bars below.
Flavour Profile Of Blood Orange And Its Complementary Flavour Notes
Flavour wheel chart showing the dominant flavour notes of Blood orange: Grapefruit, Raspberry, Neroli, Passionfruit, Bergamot, Blossom, Resinous, Blackberry, Cherry, Hibiscus, Apricot, Astringent, Honeyed, Ficus, Peach, Malic, Jasmine, Cedar, Molasses, Pear, Lychee, Pineapple, Rose, Sugary, Mango, Acetic, Elderflower, Lavender, Caramel, Maple, Balsam, Raisin, Tea-Like, Basil, Rosemary, Grassy, Poivre, Tannic, Pine, Glutamic
Matching Flavour Profiles
The flavour profile of stevia offers many of the aromas complementary to blood orange, including sugary and leafy notes. Because the flavour profile of stevia has many of the of the features that are complementary to blood orange, they are likely to pair very well together.
Prominent Flavour Notes Of Stevia Are Represented By Longer Bars
Flavour wheel chart showing the dominant flavour notes of Stevia: Sugary, Anise, Chlorophyll, Gentian, Tea-Like, Eucalyptol, Grassy, Hay, Honeyed, Cinchona, Fennel, Tannic
The chart above shows the unique profile of stevia across 150 dimensions of flavour, while the recipes below offer inspiration for bringing these flavours together with blood orange.
Recipes That Pair Blood Orange With Stevia
Linked Flavour Notes
Looking at the aroma notes that are most strongly associated with the various flavours of blood orange, we can identify other ingredients that are likely to pair well.
Blood Orange's Harmonious Flavours And Complementary Ingredients
Blood orange's Strongest Flavours
Complementary Flavours
Ingredients with Complementary Flavours
Flavour groups:
Nectarous
Acidic
Floral
Vegetal
Maillard
Earthy
Carnal
The left side of the chart above highlights the aroma notes of blood orange, along with the complementary aromas associated with each note. While the right side shows some of the ingredients that share many of the accents complementary to blood orange.
What To Drink With Blood Orange
The gentian notes in cynar make it a perfect pairing with blood orange. Likewise, the lacteal flavours in estremadura create a match made in heaven. Explore a variety of ingredients below that beautifully complement the unique character of blood orange below.
Which Vegetables Go With Blood Orange?
Choose vegetables that anchor its citrusiness or carry its citrusy brightness. Salsify offers vibrant, clean counterpoints, its verdant freshness lifting the palate. Carrot add a gentle, oniony brightness, while shallot introduces a sophisticated, anise-tinged elegance.
Alternatively, embrace vegetables that harmonise with blood orange's sharpness. The addition of broccolini, with its subtle leafy notes, can complement the vinegar beautifully. Black olive bridges earthiness and citrus zest, while sorrel lends a bright minerality.
How Flavonomics Works
We've pioneered a unique, data-driven approach to decode the intricate art of flavour pairing. Our goal is to move beyond intuition and uncover the science of why certain ingredients harmonise beautifully. This rigorous methodology allows us to provide you with insightful and reliable pairing recommendations.
Our analysis begins with over 50,000 carefully selected recipes from acclaimed chefs like Galton Blackiston, Marcello Tully, and Pierre Lambinon. This premium dataset ensures our model distils genuine culinary excellence and creativity.
Each ingredient from these recipes is deconstructed across 150 distinct flavour dimensions, creating a unique numerical "flavour fingerprint." This quantification allows us to apply advanced analytical methods to identify complex patterns between flavour notes.
We identify popular ingredient combinations that frequently appear in our recipe database. Regression analysis is then performed on these pairings to statistically validate and pinpoint truly harmonious flavours.
These insights drive our predictive model, which allows us to take any ingredient (e.g., Blood orange), analyse its detailed flavour profile, and accurately reveal its complementary flavours and perfect ingredient partners.
Explore More
Discover more ingredient profiles and expand your culinary knowledge. Each ingredient page offers detailed analysis of flavour profiles, pairing insights, and culinary applications.
The content on our analysis blog is semi-automated. All of the words were manually written by a human, but the content is updated dynamically based on the data.