Why it works: Beans and tomato match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 2,713 recipes. Both carry 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells earthy, pea. The science ↓
Brunswick Stew
Ingredients
Directions
Place the shank of beef in a large pot and cover with water, then cook as for soup.
After several hours, remove the shank, shred the meat, and discard the bones and gristle.
Return the shredded meat to the pot and add the mashed potatoes, butter beans, corn, and chopped tomatoes.
Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Just before serving, stir in 2-3 tablespoons of butter.
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.
-
Beans + tomatotop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together2,713 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
-
Beans + corntop 3% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together1,211 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,3-pentanedione (butter, sweet).
-
Potato + corntop 5% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together938 recipes
Shared aroma: (e)-2-octenal (fatty, green).
-
Potato + beanstop 5% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together655 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isobutyl-3-methoxypyrazine (green bell pepper, earthy).
-
Potato + tomatotop 5% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together2,798 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Beef shank
- Gives the broth its meaty flavor and body as it cooks for hours.
- Potatoes
- Mashed into the stew, they thicken the liquid and add body.
- Butter beans
- Hold their shape and add starchy, creamy texture to the stew.
- Corn
- Adds sweetness and a bit of texture to the stew.
- Tomatoes
- Add acidity and moisture, brightening the rich broth.
- Butter
- Stirred in at the end, it adds richness and a glossy finish.
The step that matters
Shredding the beef and removing the bones and gristle. Bones and gristle left in the stew are unpleasant to eat and can hide in the mixture. Removing them after long cooking, while the meat is tender, leaves only the soft meat to return to the pot.
“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.
You might also like
Tomato Soup526 recipes
Brown Bread461 recipes
Potato Croquettes255 recipes
Roast Beef211 recipesThe free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.