Name: Green Pea and Basil Spring Soup
Ingredients: 1 Tbs. olive oil; 2 large shallots, peeled and diced; 2 cups nonfat vegetable broth; 2 lb. green peas, fresh or frozen; 1 8-oz. container vegan sour cream; 1 tsp. fresh lemon juice, or to taste; Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste; 1 1/2 cups loosely packed fresh basil; 2 cups (3.5 oz.) coarsely crushed sweet potato chips

Why it works: Lemon and basil match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,823 recipes. Both carry 3-hexenal, which smells apple, fruity. The science ↓

Green Pea and Basil Spring Soup

Ingredients

1 Tbs. olive oil
2 large shallots, peeled and diced
2 cups nonfat vegetable broth
2 lb. green peas, fresh or frozen
1 8-oz. container vegan sour cream
1 tsp. fresh lemon juice, or to taste
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 1/2 cups loosely packed fresh basil
2 cups (3.5 oz.) coarsely crushed sweet potato chips

Directions

Prepare the soup base

Heat oil in skillet over medium-high heat.
When hot, add shallots and sauté until golden, about 5 minutes.
Meanwhile, bring vegetable broth to a boil over medium heat in large saucepan, and add peas.
Return to a boil, and cook 3 to 4 minutes.
Set 1 cup cooked peas aside.

Blend and finish

Place remaining peas and broth in blender or food processor.
Add shallots, sour cream, lemon juice, salt and pepper, and process until smooth.
Add basil, and process again.
Return puréed peas to saucepan, and stir with remaining 1 cup whole peas.
Reheat.

Serve

Ladle into individual soup bowls, sprinkle sweet potato chips on soup and serve.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

447Calories

25 gProtein

15 gFat

56 gCarbs

What these numbers assume: 9 portions

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Olive Oil	1 tbsp (14g)	119
Sweet Potato	1 medium (114g) baked	103
Yogurt	170g plain Greek	100
Pea	1/2 cup (72g)	62
Onion	1 medium (110g)	44
Lemon	juice of 1 lemon (48ml)	12
Black Pepper	1 tsp ground (2.3g)	6
Basil	5 leaves fresh (2.5g)	1
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.

Lemon + basiltop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together1,823 recipes

Shared aroma: 3-hexenal (apple, fruity).
Shallot + sweet potatotop 2% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together29 recipes

Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
Lemon + peppertop 3% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together27,047 recipes

Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
Olive + basiltop 3% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together5,063 recipes

Shared aroma: 3-hexenal (apple, fruity).
Pepper + basiltop 4% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together5,294 recipes

Shared aroma: methyl cinnamate (strawberry).

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

What each ingredient does

Green peas: Provide the main body, sweetness and bright green color of the soup.
Vegan sour cream: Adds creaminess and a tangy richness to the blended soup.
Fresh basil: Contributes a fresh, aromatic herbal flavor.
Shallots: Add a mild, sweet onion-like depth when softened and browned in oil.
Vegetable broth: Provides the liquid that lets the peas blend into a smooth soup.
Sweet potato chips: Add a crunchy, salty topping contrasting with the smooth soup.

The step that matters

Blending until smooth. Peas must be blended thoroughly while the broth is hot enough to soften their starches and cell walls. Under-processing leaves grainy, fibrous texture, and the basil should be added last and processed briefly so it stays bright green rather than turning dull from overheating.

Swap the peas

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (olive, shallot, cream, lemon, pepper, basil, sweet potato):

Chickpeafits better
Beansfits better
Lentilsfits better
Peasthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against olive, shallot, cream, lemon, pepper, basil, sweet potato. 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.

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Green Peas229 recipes

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Green Pea and Basil Spring Soup