Why it works: Carrot and turnip are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 2% of all ingredient pairs, and 8,001 recipes mention both. Both carry coumarin, which smells sweet, hay. The science ↓
The recipe
Ingredients
Contains: milk (auto-detected from the ingredients and method; we can miss things, so check labels)
Directions
Make the stock
In a large pot, brown the beef and ham in the butter without burning them.
Pour in the boiling water and skim off any scum that rises to the surface.
Once the scum is removed, add all the other ingredients.
Simmer and strain
Let the soup simmer slowly for 6 hours without stirring.
After 6 hours, remove from heat and let it settle.
Skim off as much fat as possible and strain the soup through a fine sieve.
Once cooled, remove any remaining fat and leave the sediment for gravies or hashes.
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 aroma chemistry they share, and how many recipes mention both.
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Carrot + turniptop 2% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together8,001 recipes
Shared aroma: coumarin (sweet, hay).
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Beef + oniontop 3% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together17,091 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
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Onion + carrottop 4% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together21,599 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
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Beef + vealtop 4% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together3,784 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,6-nonadienal (cucumber, green).
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Onion + turniptop 4% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together7,584 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
- Beef shin
- Breaks down during long simmering to release gelatin and rich body into the broth.
- Veal knuckle
- Adds gelatin from connective tissue, giving the soup body and a silky mouthfeel.
- Butter
- Browns the meat and ham, building roasted flavour and carrying aroma into the pot.
- Onions
- Contribute sweetness and savoury depth as they cook slowly into the broth.
- Celery
- Adds aromatic, savoury background flavour to the stock.
The step that matters
Skimming the scum before adding the other ingredients. Scum is coagulated protein and impurities that cloud the broth and can taste bitter; removing it early keeps the stock clear and clean-flavoured.
Flavor stand-ins for the turnip
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (beef, veal, meat, ham, butter, onion, carrot):
- Potatobetter flavor fit
- Tomatobetter flavor fit
- Leekbetter flavor fit
- Turnipthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against beef, veal, meat, ham, butter, onion, carrot. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes. This compares flavor only: it does not check the job the ingredient does in the dish (bulk, moisture, acidity, structure).
“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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