Perfect Pairings & Recipes for
Chilli Flakes

Exquisite chilli flakes flavour pairings and recipes, revealed through data science.

Fiery sensation and capsicum notes are at the forefront of chilli flakes's flavour profile, but identifying its perfect partner requires exploring its subtle nuances. We must examine the complex interplay of notes within its bouquet, like black pepper, char, and hints of smoke. We need to understand how these notes affect each other and which complementary flavors they harmonise with.

To chart these harmonies, we analysed thousands of ingredients, each deconstructed across 150 distinct flavour dimensions, pinpointing the notes that best complement this ingredient’s profile. Our analysis reveals, for example, how sunflower oil's hexenal tones carry chilli flakes, and how fenugreek's sotolon notes create a surprising synergy with its fiery sensation.

An ingredient's flavour profile is determined by its core characteristics (e.g. spice, maillard, and acidic) 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.

Flavour Pairing Method

To understand exactly which flavours harmonise, we compiled a database of over 50,000 ingredient pairings commonly used in cooking. We then analysed these pairings, identifying the specific flavour notes that frequently appear together.

The Flavours That Harmonise With Capsaicin Notes

Our analysis shows that the flavour of chilli is strongly associated with the flavour of fenugreek. This suggests we should look for ingredients with a fenugreek flavour when pairing with the hot aromas of chilli flakes.

The recipes below provide inspiration for pairing chilli flakes with fenugreek.

Harmonious Flavours Of Chilli Flakes

Just as our analysis showed that chilli and fenugreek flavour notes harmonise, we can identify the full profile of flavours that harmonise with each of the flavour accents present in chilli flakes. For instance, the capsicum flavours of chilli flakes are strongly associated with corn-like and briney accents.

The notes complementary to the various aroma notes of chilli flakes can be seen highlighted in the pink bars below.

Matching Flavour Profiles

The flavour profile of sunflower oil offers many of the aroma accents complementary to chilli flakes, including grassy and seedy notes. Because the flavour profile of sunflower oil has many of the of the features that are complementary to chilli flakes, they are likely to pair very well together.

The chart above shows the unique profile of sunflower oil across 150 dimensions of flavour, while the recipes below offer inspiration for bringing these flavours together with chilli flakes.

Recipes That Pair Chilli Flakes With Sunflower Oil

Linked Flavour Notes

Looking at the notes that are most strongly associated with the various flavours of chilli flakes, we can identify other ingredients that are likely to pair well.

The left side of the chart above highlights the aroma notes of chilli flakes, 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 chilli flakes.

What To Drink With Chilli Flakes

The fenugreek notes in savagnin make it a perfect pairing with chilli flakes. Likewise, the fenugreek flavours in château-chalon create a match made in heaven. Explore a variety of ingredients below that beautifully complement the unique character of chilli flakes below.

Which Herbs Go With Chilli Flakes?

Choose herbs that resonate with its fieriness or resonate with its mild pepper aroma. Curry leaf and bouquet garni offer vibrant, clean counterpoints, their verdant freshness lifting the palate. Rosemary add a gentle, oniony brightness, while coriander introduces a sophisticated, anise-tinged elegance.

Alternatively, embrace herbs that harmonise with chilli flakes's pepperiness. The addition of marjoram, with its subtle camphoraceous notes, can complement the bell pepper beautifully, while mint lends a pungent aroma.

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., Chilli flakes), analyse its detailed flavour profile, and accurately reveal its complementary flavours and perfect ingredient partners.