Name: Super Simple Casserole
Ingredients: 1 10-3/4 ounce can condensed cream of chicken soup; 1/2 cup grated Cheddar cheese; 1 1/2 cups chopped cooked chicken; 2 cups cooked rice; 1/2 cup sour cream; 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley; 1/4 cup chopped pimientos; 1/2 teaspoon salt; 1/2 teaspoon seasoned pepper; 1/2 of 3-ounce can rice noodles or chow mein noodles; 2 eggs, beaten; 1 1/2 cups cottage cheese; 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese; 2 cups grated Cheddar cheese, divided

Why it works: Cheddar cheese and cottage cheese match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 191 recipes. Both carry ethyl 2-methylbutyrate, which smells fruity, apple. 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.

Cheddar cheese + cottage cheesetop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together191 recipes

Shared aroma: ethyl 2-methylbutyrate (fruity, apple).
Parsley + peppertop 2% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together34,122 recipes

Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
Chicken + ricetop 5% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together4,769 recipes

Shared aroma: (e,e)-2,4-decadienal (fatty, deep fried).
Rice + parsleytop 10% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together2,762 recipes

Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
Rice + peppertop 12% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together8,379 recipes

Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).

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

What each ingredient does

Cream of chicken soup: Provides the creamy, moist base that binds the casserole together.
Cheddar cheese: Melts into the sauce, adding richness and savory flavor.
Cooked rice: Adds bulk and body, absorbing some of the sauce as it heats.
Sour cream: Adds tang and moisture, keeping the filling creamy when baked.
Cooked chicken: Supplies the main protein and savory flavor of the dish.

Swap the parsley

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (cream, chicken, cheddar cheese, rice, pepper, egg, cottage cheese):

Garlicfits about as well
Celeryfits about as well
Nutmegfits about as well
Parsleythe original

Fit is the average pairing score against cream, chicken, cheddar cheese, rice, pepper, egg, cottage cheese. 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
Chicken	100g cooked	165
Cheddar Cheese	1 oz (28g)	113
Parmesan Cheese	1 oz (28g)	110
Yogurt	170g plain Greek	100
Cottage Cheese	1/2 cup (113g) 2%	98
Egg	1 large egg (50g)	78
Cream	1 tbsp (15ml) heavy	51
Black Pepper	1 tsp ground (2.3g)	6
Parsley	1 tbsp chopped fresh (3.8g)	1
Salt	1 tsp (6g)	0
Soup	not in our table	0

Super Simple Casserole