Name: Quick Provençal Mushroom and White Bean Stew
Ingredients: 2 tablespoons olive oil; 1 pound fresh white mushrooms (about 5 cups) -- sliced; 1 cup chopped onions; 1 teaspoon garlic -- minced; 3/4 teaspoon dried thyme -- crushed; 2 13 oz cans vegetable broth; 1 14.5 oz can stewed tomatoes, cut into -- bite size pieces; 1/4 cup dry white wine; 2 15 oz cans cannellini beans -- rinsed & drained

Why it works: Onion and garlic match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 29,058 recipes. Both carry furaneol, which smells caramel, strawberry. The science ↓

Quick Provençal Mushroom and White Bean Stew

Timeabout 15 minutes simmer

Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 pound fresh white mushrooms (about 5 cups) -- sliced
1 cup chopped onions
1 teaspoon garlic -- minced
3/4 teaspoon dried thyme -- crushed
2 13 oz cans vegetable broth
1 14.5 oz can stewed tomatoes, cut into -- bite size pieces
1/4 cup dry white wine
2 15 oz cans cannellini beans -- rinsed & drained

Directions

Make the stew base

Heat olive oil in a Dutch oven or large stockpot over medium‑high heat until hot.
Add mushrooms, onion, garlic, and thyme.
Cook and stir until onion is very tender and mushrooms are slightly golden, about 8 minutes.

Simmer and thicken

Add vegetable broth, tomatoes (including liquid), and wine.
Bring the mixture to a boil.
Reduce heat.
Cover the pot.
Simmer to blend flavors, about 15 minutes.
Mash 1 cup of the beans in a small bowl until smooth.
Add the mashed beans to the stew.
Stir in the remaining beans.
Heat until hot, about 8 minutes.

Serve

Serve immediately.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

233Calories

5 gProtein

14 gFat

20 gCarbs

Counts 7 of 8 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 7 portions

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Olive Oil	1 tbsp (14g)	119
Onion	1 medium (110g)	44
Wine	2 tbsp cooking wine (30ml)	25
Tomato	1 medium (123g)	22
Mushroom	1/2 cup sliced (35g)	15
Garlic	1 clove (3g)	4
Thyme	1 tsp dried (1.4g)	4
Cannellini Bean	not in our table	0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

Recipe from the Recipes Wiki (Fandom).

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

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.

Onion + garlictop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together29,058 recipes

Shared aroma: furaneol (caramel, strawberry).
Olive + tomatotop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together15,539 recipes

Shared aroma: 3-hexenal (apple, fruity).
Tomato + beanstop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together2,713 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
Olive + garlictop 2% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together25,665 recipes

Shared aroma: linalool (floral, citrus).
Garlic + tomatotop 3% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together14,076 recipes

Shared aroma: furaneol (caramel, strawberry).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

White mushrooms: Release moisture and browning, adding savory depth as they turn slightly golden.
Cannellini beans: Add body and creaminess when one cup is mashed into the broth, thickening the stew.
Stewed tomatoes: Add acidity and liquid that carry the flavors of the stew.
Vegetable broth: Forms the main cooking liquid that the stew simmers in.
Onions: Soften and turn sweet as they cook, building the flavor base.

The step that matters

Mash 1 cup of the beans until smooth. Mashed beans release starch that thickens the broth. Mashing only part of the beans keeps the stew hearty while giving it a creamy body.

Swap the beans

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (olive, mushroom, onion, garlic, thyme, tomato, white wine):

Chickpeafits about as well
Beansthe original
Lentilsfits less well
Sesamefits less well

Fit is the average pairing score against olive, mushroom, onion, garlic, thyme, tomato, white wine. 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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Quick Provençal Mushroom and White Bean Stew