Why it works: Pepper and parsley match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 2% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 34,122 recipes. Both carry 4'-methylacetophenone, which smells bitter almond. The science ↓
Stuffed Peppers
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a quick oven”. The 400°F (200°C) in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Prepare the peppers
Cut off the stem end of the peppers.
Remove the seeds from the peppers.
Boil the peppers in a saucepan of water for 15 minutes.
Drain the boiled peppers.
Stuff and bake
Mix the chicken, bread crumbs, salt, pepper, parsley, and melted butter together.
Fill the peppers with the stuffing.
Sprinkle the tops of the stuffed peppers with bread crumbs.
Place bits of butter on top of the stuffed peppers.
Bake the peppers in a 400°F (200°C) oven for 15 minutes.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Explore the science
The flavor team
The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.
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Pepper + parsleytop 2% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together34,122 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
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Bread + buttertop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together27,232 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-decalactone (sweet, creamy).
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Chicken + breadtop 14% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,258 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl caproate (fruity).
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Parsley + buttertop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together28,563 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-hexenal (green, leafy).
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Bread + parsleytop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together8,588 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Sweet spanish peppers
- Form the edible shell that holds the stuffing and softens when boiled and baked.
- Chopped cooked chicken
- Provides the savory, protein-rich filling that forms the body of the stuffing.
- Stale bread crumbs
- Absorb moisture in the stuffing and form a crisp, golden topping when baked.
- Butter
- Adds richness to the stuffing and melts over the top to promote browning.
The step that matters
Drain the boiled peppers well. Excess water left in the peppers dilutes the stuffing and makes the filling soggy, so the peppers should be thoroughly drained before filling.
Swap the parsley
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (pepper, chicken, bread, butter):
- Parsleythe original
- Thymefits about as well
- Garlicfits about as well
- Marjoramfits about as well
Fit is the average pairing score against pepper, chicken, bread, butter. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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