Name: Cheesy Broccoli Rice Casserole
Ingredients: 3/4 cup chopped onion; 3/4 cup chopped celery; Vegetable cooking spray; 3 cups cooked rice; 1 10-ounce package frozen chopped broccoli, thawed; 1 10 3/4-ounce can cream of mushroom soup; 3/4 cup (6 ounces) grated Cheddar cheese, divided; 1/2 cup sour cream; 1 teaspoon salt; 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

Why it works: Celery and pepper match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 5% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 16,012 recipes. Both carry 4'-methylacetophenone, which smells bitter almond. The science ↓

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.

Celery + peppertop 5% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together16,012 recipes

Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
Celery + broccolitop 6% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together807 recipes

Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
Onion + broccolitop 6% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together3,294 recipes

Shared aroma: coumarin (sweet, hay).
Onion + celerytop 7% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together18,518 recipes

Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
Celery + ricetop 7% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together2,169 recipes

Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).

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

What each ingredient does

Cooked rice: Forms the body of the casserole and absorbs moisture from the soup and sour cream.
Cream of mushroom soup: Provides moisture and a creamy binding base that holds the casserole together.
Cheddar cheese: Melts into the filling and browns on top, adding richness and savory flavor.
Sour cream: Adds fat and tang, keeping the filling moist and creamy after baking.
Broccoli: Adds vegetable texture and flavor; thawed frozen broccoli releases water, so it adds moisture.

The step that matters

Adding the top cheese late. Cheese added at the start can over-brown or become greasy during the long bake. Adding it near the end and baking briefly lets it melt evenly while the filling stays creamy.

Swap the broccoli

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (onion, celery, rice, cream, mushroom, cheddar cheese, pepper):

Potatofits better
Capsicumfits better
Spinachfits better
Broccolithe original

Fit is the average pairing score against onion, celery, rice, cream, mushroom, cheddar cheese, 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.

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Rice	1 cup cooked (158g) white	206
Vegetable	1 tbsp (14g)	120
Cheddar Cheese	1 oz (28g)	113
Yogurt	170g plain Greek	100
Broccoli	1 cup chopped (156g)	55
Cream	1 tbsp (15ml) heavy	51
Onion	1 medium (110g)	44
Mushroom	1/2 cup sliced (35g)	15
Celery	1 stalk (40g)	6
Black Pepper	1 tsp ground (2.3g)	6
Salt	1 tsp (6g)	0
Soup	not in our table	0

Cheesy Broccoli Rice Casserole