Perfect Pairings & Recipes for
Shiso

Exquisite shiso flavour pairings and recipes, revealed through data science.

Shiso is marked by the unmistakable flavours of eucalyptus and basil, woven with delicate hints of mint, camphor, and clove, giving it remarkable depth. The key to finding the perfect pairing for shiso is understanding how these notes harmonise.

To map these harmonies, we analysed thousands of ingredients, breaking each one down across 150 flavour dimensions, identifying which notes complement and contrast. Our findings reveal, for instance, how mackerel's oceanic tones can enrich shiso, or how lamb rump's ovine notes create an unexpectedly harmonious bridge with the medicinal aroma.

An ingredient's flavour comes from its core characteristics, like herbal, spice, and floral, combined with its unique aroma notes (outer bars). When pairing ingredients, aim to include a broad variety of core characteristics for a balanced dish. And choose aroma notes that complement each other for a harmonious combination.

Unlocking Flavour Combinations

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 Eucalyptus Notes

Our analysis shows that the flavour of eucalyptus is strongly associated with the flavour of lamb. This suggests we should look for ingredients with a lamby flavour, such as lamb rump, when pairing with the eucalyptol accents of shiso.

The recipe below provides inspiration for pairing shiso with lamb rump.

Harmonious Flavours Of Shiso

Just as our ingredient analysis revealed that eucalyptus and gamey notes combine harmoniously, we can identify the full profile of flavours that harmonise with each of the flavours present in shiso. Similarly, the menthol notes of shiso frequently pair with elder and melony notes.

The aromas linked to the various notes of shiso can be seen highlighted in the pink bars below.

Matching Flavour Profiles

The flavour profile of mackerel offers many of the aromas complementary to shiso, including oceanic and fatty aroma accents. Because the flavour profile of mackerel has many of the of the features that are complementary to shiso, they are likely to pair very well together.

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

Recipes That Pair Shiso With Mackerel

Linked Flavour Notes

Looking at the aroma accents that are most strongly associated with the various flavours of shiso, we can identify other ingredients that are likely to pair well.

The left side of the chart above highlights the aroma notes of shiso, along with the complementary aromas associated with each note. While the right side shows some of the ingredients that share many of the aroma notes complementary to shiso.

What To Drink With Shiso

The fatty notes in pecorino make it a perfect pairing with shiso. Likewise, the oceanic flavours in manzanilla sherry create a match made in heaven. Explore a variety of ingredients below that beautifully complement the unique character of shiso below.

Which Fruit Go With Shiso?

Choose fruit that embrace its coolness or resonate with its pungent spice. Apple and pear offer vibrant, clean counterpoints, their verdant freshness lifting the palate. Granny Smith apple add a gentle, oniony brightness, while mango introduces a sophisticated, anise-tinged elegance.

Alternatively, embrace fruit that harmonise with shiso's turpentiness. The addition of grape tomato, with its subtle glutamic notes, can complement the resin beautifully, while avocado lends a savoury richness.

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