Name: Savory Vegetable Soup
Ingredients: 1 large can of tomatoes (whole or; chopped); 1 can tomato paste; 1 6 oz can of v8 (i like the; spicy kind); 3 large potatoes, peeled and cut; into large chunks; 4 celery stalks, chopped into; lg chunks; 1 large onion, chopped into large; chunks; 1 cup or more large, fresh; cleaned mushrooms (left; whole); 5 carrots, cut into large; chunks; 1 quarter head of fresh, green; cabbage, cut into big; chunks; 1 can green beans; 1 can lima beans; 1 can corn; 1 bay leaf; 2 cubes (b**f) or vegetable; bullion; x enough water to cover; veggies by about 2 inches; x seasoning to taste

Why it works: Celery and carrot match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 10,173 recipes. Both carry myristicin, which smells spice, warm. 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 + carrottop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together10,173 recipes

Shared aroma: myristicin (spice, warm).
Potato + oniontop 3% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together9,023 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
Tomato + celerytop 4% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together3,377 recipes

Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
Potato + carrottop 4% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together3,107 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-isobutyl-3-methoxypyrazine (green bell pepper, earthy).
Potato + green beanstop 5% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together81 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-isobutyl-3-methoxypyrazine (green bell pepper, earthy).

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

What each ingredient does

Tomatoes: Provide acidity, body and juice that forms the soup's base liquid.
Potatoes: Add starch that softens during simmering and gives the soup body.
Carrots: Add natural sweetness and firm texture that holds up during long simmering.
Celery: Contributes savory aroma and a firm, slightly crisp texture after cooking.
Onion: Adds savory depth and aroma as it softens and releases sugars.
Mushrooms: Add earthy savory flavor and a soft, meaty texture.

The step that matters

Simmering until the veggies are fully cooked. Long, gentle simmering breaks down the firm vegetables and lets flavors blend. Starting with enough water and topping it up keeps the vegetables covered so they cook evenly rather than scorching on the bottom of the kettle.

Swap the cabbage

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (tomato, potato, celery, onion, mushroom, carrot, green beans):

Capsicumfits better
Spinachfits better
Broccolifits better
Cabbagethe original

Fit is the average pairing score against tomato, potato, celery, onion, mushroom, carrot, green beans. 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
Potato	1 medium (173g) baked	161
Vegetable	1 tbsp (14g)	120
Lima Bean	1/2 cup (85g) cooked	108
Corn	1/2 cup kernels (82g)	77
Broccoli	1 cup chopped (156g)	55
Onion	1 medium (110g)	44
Bell Pepper	1 medium (119g)	31
Carrot	1 medium (61g)	25
Tomato	1 medium (123g)	22
Mushroom	1/2 cup sliced (35g)	15
Celery Stalks	1 stalk (40g)	6
Bay Leaf	1 leaf (0.6g)	2
Water	not in our table	0

Savory Vegetable Soup