Why it works: Cider and apple match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and 1,042 recipes mention both. Both carry ethyl 2-methylbutyrate, which smells fruity, apple. The science ↓
The recipe
12 cupsIngredients
Contains: milk, tree nuts (auto-detected from the ingredients and method; we can miss things, so check labels)
Directions
Method written by CompKitchen from the ingredient list. Not the original author's method, not kitchen-tested.
In a large bowl, whisk the Greek yogurt, cider vinegar, chopped parsley, and a pinch each of salt and cracked pepper until smooth to make the dressing.
Place the shredded romaine in a very large serving bowl or on a platter.
Add the sliced apple, julienned roasted turkey, dried cranberries, and toasted pecans to the romaine.
Pour about half the yogurt dressing over the salad and toss gently to coat. Add more dressing to taste, reserving any extra for serving.
Sprinkle the crumbled goat cheese over the top just before serving. Roasted turkey is already cooked, so it only needs to be at room temperature or chilled.
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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Cider + appletop 1% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together1,042 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl 2-methylbutyrate (fruity, apple).
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Parsley + peppertop 2% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together34,118 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
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Cider + vinegartop 4% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together402 recipes
Shared aroma: 4-ethyl-2-methoxyphenol (smoky, clove).
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Yogurt + goat cheesetop 5% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together36 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-ol (mushroom, earthy).
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Yogurt + vinegartop 6% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together955 recipes
Shared aroma: isoamyl acetate (banana, fruity).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
Flavor stand-ins for the parsley
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (yogurt, goat cheese, cider, vinegar, pepper, apple, turkey):
- Thymebetter flavor fit
- Clovebetter flavor fit
- Peppermintbetter flavor fit
- Parsleythe original
Fit is the average pairing score against yogurt, goat cheese, cider, vinegar, pepper, apple, turkey. 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).
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