Name: Mulligan Stew with Rice
Ingredients: 1 1/2 pounds beef cube steaks, cut into 1-inch squares; 1 cup chopped onion; 1 1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil; 3 stalks of celery, cut into 1-inch pieces; 1 teaspoon salt; 1/2 teaspoon seasoned pepper; 1 cup beef broth; 1 14-1/2- to 16-ounce can peeled whole tomatoes, drained and chopped; 1 8-ounce can whole kernel corn, drained; 1 4-ounce can sliced mushrooms, drained; 1 tablespoon cornstarch; 1/4 cup water; 3 cups hot cooked rice (cooked in beef broth)

Why it works: Celery and tomato are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 4% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 3,377 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 + tomatotop 4% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together3,377 recipes

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

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together3,232 recipes

Shared aroma: 2,4-nonadienal (fatty, green).
Celery + peppertop 5% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together16,012 recipes

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

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together933 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Tomato + corntop 6% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together2,099 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).

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

What each ingredient does

Beef cube steaks: Provide the main protein, which browns first and becomes tender during the simmer.
Cornstarch: Thickens the stew's liquid when heated, giving it a slightly thickened body.
Beef broth: Forms the cooking liquid that tenderizes the beef and flavors the stew.
Rice: Serves as the base the stew is spooned over, soaking up the thickened liquid.

The step that matters

Stirring the cornstarch mixture into the stew. Cornstarch must be mixed with cold water first, then heated, so its starch granules swell and thicken evenly. Added dry or into a dry pot, it clumps and leaves a lumpy, uneven texture.

Swap the onion

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (beef, celery, pepper, tomato, corn, mushroom, rice):

Capsicumfits better
Carrotfits better
Potatofits better
Onionthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against beef, celery, pepper, tomato, corn, mushroom, rice. 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
Flour	1 cup (125g) all-purpose	455
Beef	100g cooked	250
Rice	1 cup cooked (158g) white	206
Olive Oil	1 tbsp (14g)	119
Corn	1/2 cup kernels (82g)	77
Onion	1 medium (110g)	44
Tomato	1 medium (123g)	22
Mushrooms	1/2 cup sliced (35g)	15
Celery	1 stalk (40g)	6
Black Pepper	1 tsp ground (2.3g)	6
Salt	1 tsp (6g)	0
Water	not in our table	0

Mulligan Stew with Rice