Cold Sweet and Sour Soup

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.

1. Olive + tomatotop 1% of all pairs
   Smell alikemoderate
   Cooked together15,539 recipes

   Shared aroma: 3-hexenal (apple, fruity).

2. Lemon + orangetop 1% of all pairs
   Smell alikestrong
   Cooked together10,634 recipes

   Shared aroma: 3-hexenal (apple, fruity).

3. Onion + cabbagetop 7% of all pairs
   Smell alikestrong
   Cooked together3,001 recipes

   Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).

4. Olive + lemontop 7% of all pairs
   Smell alikemoderate
   Cooked together11,922 recipes

   Shared aroma: 3-hexenal (apple, fruity).

5. Olive + orangetop 8% of all pairs
   Smell alikemoderate
   Cooked together2,456 recipes

   Shared aroma: 3-hexenal (apple, fruity).

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

What each ingredient does

Onion

Softens and sweetens as it cooks, forming the flavour base of the soup.

Tomatoes

Provide body, moisture and acidity that give the soup its base colour and tang.

Honey

Adds sweetness that balances the sharpness of the lemon and orange juice.

Lemon juice

Adds sourness that gives the soup its sour character.

Cabbage

Adds bulk and a mild sweetness and texture when sautéed and pureed.

The step that matters

Swap the cabbage

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (olive, onion, tomato, lemon, honey, orange, tofu):

1. Capsicumfits better
2. Broccolifits better
3. Carrotfits better
4. Cabbagethe original

Fit is the average pairing score against olive, onion, tomato, lemon, honey, orange, tofu. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.