Name: Crawfish or Shrimp Pilaf
Ingredients: 1 med onion; 1 can (4 oz.) mushrooms w/juice; 1/4 lbs oleo; salt and pepper to taste; 1 cup uncooked rice; 1 bell pepper - chopped; 1 can swanson's beef broth; 1 lbs crawfish or shrimp - peeled; jalapeno pepper to taste

Why it works: Mushroom and beef are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 4% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 3,232 recipes. Both carry 2,4-nonadienal, which smells fatty, green. The science ↓

Crawfish or Shrimp Pilaf

Ingredients

Directions

Combine all ingredients in one pot.
Bring to a boil, then turn down and simmer until the rice is cooked.
If you have a Hitachi rice cooker, use 1 ½ cups of rice using the measure supplied with the cooker and turn it on to cook.
When it clicks off to warmer, dinner is ready.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

761Calories

59 gProtein

28 gFat

66 gCarbs

What these numbers assume: 10 portions

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Beef	100g cooked	250
Rice	1 cup cooked (158g) white	206
Butter	1 tbsp (14g)	102
Shrimp	100g cooked	99
Onion	1 medium (110g)	44
Bell Pepper	1 medium (119g)	31
Mushroom	1/2 cup sliced (35g)	15
Chili	1 tsp (2.7g)	8
Black Pepper	1 tsp ground (2.3g)	6
Salt	1 tsp (6g)	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.

Mushroom + beeftop 4% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together3,232 recipes

Shared aroma: 2,4-nonadienal (fatty, green).
Onion + beeftop 7% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together17,092 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
Mushroom + ricetop 9% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together1,515 recipes

Shared aroma: 2,4-nonadienal (fatty, green).
Onion + ricetop 9% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together10,433 recipes

Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
Pepper + beeftop 10% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together18,971 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

Rice: Absorbs the broth and sets the dish's pilaf texture as it cooks.
Crawfish or shrimp: Provides the main protein and seafood flavor.
Beef broth: Supplies the cooking liquid and savory flavor the rice absorbs.
Oleo: Adds fat that carries flavor and gives the rice a richer mouthfeel.
Mushrooms: Add earthy flavor and moisture, and their juice goes into the pot.
Onion: Adds aromatic sweetness and savory depth as it cooks in the liquid.

Swap the jalapeno

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (onion, mushroom, pepper, rice, beef, shrimp):

Garlicfits better
Thymefits better
Celeryfits better
Jalapenothe original

Fit is the average pairing score against onion, mushroom, pepper, rice, beef, shrimp. 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.