Why it works: Thyme and parsley match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 9,057 recipes. Both carry cuminaldehyde, which smells Spicy, cumin. The science ↓
Okra Soup
Ingredients
Directions
The book gives no cooking times; the times in the steps were added in transcription, so check for doneness rather than trusting the clock.
Make the soup
In a large pot, combine the beef or veal with enough water to cover.
Add the tomatoes, okra, onions, herbs, allspice, salt, and pepper.
Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 8 to 9 hours.
For added flavor, you can include hard crabs during the last hour of cooking.
Strain and finish
Strain the soup through a colander and discard solids.
Skim off any grease from the surface.
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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Thyme + parsleytop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together9,057 recipes
Shared aroma: cuminaldehyde (Spicy, cumin).
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Thyme + allspicetop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together1,077 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
-
Parsley + peppertop 2% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together34,122 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
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Parsley + allspicetop 3% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together1,289 recipes
Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).
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Okra + parsleytop 3% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together206 recipes
Shared aroma: coumarin (sweet, hay).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Shin of beef or knuckle of veal
- Releases gelatin and savory flavor into the broth during long simmering, giving it body.
- Okra
- Releases starch that thickens the broth and gives the soup its characteristic texture.
- Tomatoes
- Add acidity and body, rounding out the savory flavor of the broth.
- Onions
- Build savory depth as they soften and dissolve into the broth.
The step that matters
Skim off any grease from the surface. Fat from the meat rises and sets on top of the broth. Skimming before serving removes the greasy layer and leaves a cleaner, lighter-tasting soup.
Swap the onion
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (beef, tomato, okra, thyme, parsley, allspice, pepper):
- Carrotfits better
- Capsicumfits better
- Eggplantfits better
- Onionthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against beef, tomato, okra, thyme, parsley, allspice, pepper. 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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