Why are salt & pepper most commonly used together as opposed to salt and garlic, or other spices?
In: Culture
First off, the always having a pepper on the table is a very western, very American thing.
Salt is a pretty neutral seasoning; it enhances pretty much all flavors. [“at low concentrations it will reduce bitterness, but increase sweet, sour and umami, which is desirable for sweet recipes. But at higher concentrations it suppresses sweetness and enhances umami, which is good for savoury things.”](https://www.sciencefocus.com/science/why-does-salt-enhance-flavour/) You add pinch of salt to cookies; it makes them taste sweeter. You add heavier amount of salt to steak, it makes it taste more savoury. Salt has its own receptors on our tongue (there are no specific ‘garlic receptors’ or pepper receptors lol).
Pepper is spice that adds some mild heat to most dishes, and isn’t overpowering to the other flavors. Even if you add a lot, it’s mostly the heat you notice. It’s own flavor is pretty mild. The accompaniment is probably [mostly for historical reasons](https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2018/02/02/582477785/how-did-salt-and-pepper-become-the-soulmates-of-western-cuisine).
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