Nine Insane Flavour Combinations That Shouldn’t Work But Definitely Do

What about a twist or two of black pepper over sweet, juicy strawberries? There are some weird flavour combos that shouldn’t really turn our taste buds into fireworks but they do. Fancy trying any of these?

Coffee and Rib-Eye Steak

Don’t believe me? Do a quick internet search and you’ll find out that beef cooked with coffee is a totally a thing. Liz from The Lemon Bowl has developed this recipe for Coffee Crusted Grilled Rib-eyes which she says “creates this mouth-watering, sweet and smoky crust that seals in the juices and keeps the beef tender.” Sounds amazing. You’ll also find these two paired up in casseroles, slow-cooked briskets and chilli con carne.

Strawberry and Black Pepper

“It may sound odd, but black pepper makes strawberries taste more like strawberries with a little peppery tickle on your tongue. I’m not talking a dash of black pepper. I’m talking a lot of black pepper, don’t be shy.” This is Meseidy, from the blog The Noshery, who knows a bit about this strange food combination. She’s developed this recipe for Peppery Strawberry and Burrata Crostini. Try strawberries and black pepper wherever you’d eat strawberries - as a cheesecake topping, in ice cream or baked into muffins and cakes.

Raspberry Jam and Ham

Nope, not as a sandwich filling (although to be fair, I’ve never tried it), but as a fruity, sticky glaze for ham. This Raspberry Chipotle Glazed Ham recipe comes from Karen from the blog The Food Charlatan. But don’t just stick to jam - ham (also crisp, salty bacon) and raspberries go quite well in salads, too. The ultimate salty-sweet combination.

Chocolate and Black Garlic

Black garlic is fermented garlic - soft, sticky and depending on who you talk to, has a flavour a bit like rich balsamic vinegar or molasses. So it would work with chocolate - especially darker chocolate. Maria, from the blog Sift and Whisk has made this Black Garlic Chocolate Cake with Raspberry Sauce. You can also bake black garlic into brownies and stir into chocolate ice creams.

Courgettes and Chai Tea

“It’s not that zucchini bread is particularly awful, but rather that it is mostly just sweet and not particularly delicious,” writes Donalyn, from the blog The Creekside Cook. “So, why not go with some really strong stuff? Like black tea, warm spices, a hint of citrus and some toasty nuts? That sounds kind of… tasty, doesn’t it?” she writes. And it certainly does. You could also try adding spicy chai flavours to zucchini muffins or make a chai buttercream icing for a courgette cake.

Sweet Potato and Chocolate

Well, there’s a lot going on here. Crispy, salty sweet potato chips. And then they’re dipped in dark chocolate. Crunchy. Soft. Sweet. Salty. Kind of healthy, too. Get the recipe for Dark Chocolate Sweet Potato Chips at the Minimalist Baker blog. Sweet potatoes can also be baked into chocolate brownies and can be whisked up to make pancakes. Don’t forget the chocolate chips, obviously.

Cauliflower and Cocoa

Oh, nothing to see here, just about to whizz up some frozen cauliflower into my chocolate smoothie. Sounds weird, doesn’t it? Well it kind of is, except nutritionist and chef Christine Bailey says that it actually “creates an attractive velvety texture and is a useful way to add more health-promoting brassica vegetables into your diet.” So there you go. Find the Chocolate Hazelnut Cauliflower Smoothie recipe on her blog. Cauliflower can also be used to make dairy-free chocolate icing, chocolate mousses and cakes.

Banana and Curry

When you look over at the freckled bunch of bananas in your fruit bowl, it’s a fair bet that you’re not planning to put them in a curry. But according to Dianne, from Bibby’s Kitchen at 36, that would be a really good thing to do. She tops her Cape Malay Chicken Curry with caramelised bananas. Black plantains, if you can get them, also give a sweet, honey-like flavour to curries.

Orange and Shrimp

You’d probably think about squeezing lemon juice over your seafood, but orange is a citrus fruit, so that would work well too, right? Here’s a gorgeous recipe by Lindsay from A Pinch of Yum - Orange Brown Butter Shrimp. Sweet seafood, zesty orange and nutty-flavoured brown butter. Gorgeous. Switch out the usual lemon for orange when you’re cooking scallops, or other types of seafood, too.

Got any weird flavour combos that you love?

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