Name: Chicken Peanut Butter Soup
Ingredients: 8 to 12 chicken pieces; 250 gm smooth peanut butter; 1 medium onion, chopped; 2 L slightly warm water; 1 tsp salt; 2 medium ripe tomatoes, peeled or 2 tbs tomato paste; 1 tsp pepper; Diced pimentos, optional; 1 tsp hot curry powder, optional

Why it works: Tomato and pepper are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 7% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 17,923 recipes. Both carry 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells earthy, pea. The science ↓

Chicken Peanut Butter Soup

Ingredients

Directions

Start the chicken

Add onion and seasonings to chicken.
Moisten with a little water and cook over medium heat in a large saucepan for 15 minutes, stirring once or twice.

Make the soup

While chicken is cooking, mix peanut butter with water in a bowl until smooth, then add it to the chicken.
Bring to a boil and continue boiling for 30 minutes.
Grind tomatoes in a blender until smooth, then add the tomato pulp to the soup.
Simmer until chicken is tender and oil begins to form in soup, stirring from time to time.

Serve

Sprinkle with pimentos before serving.
Accompany with fufu and boiled potatoes or yams.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

407Calories

41 gProtein

18 gFat

22 gCarbs

Counts 7 of 9 ingredients. The other 2 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 7 portions

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Chicken	100g cooked	165
Peanut	1 oz (28g)	161
Onion	1 medium (110g)	44
Tomato	1 medium (123g)	22
Turmeric	1 tsp ground (3g)	9
Black Pepper	1 tsp ground (2.3g)	6
Salt	1 tsp (6g)	0
Water	not in our table	0
Pimento	not in our table	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.

Tomato + peppertop 7% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together17,923 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
Chicken + peanuttop 8% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together541 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-ethyl-3,6-dimethylpyrazine (roasted, nutty).
Onion + tomatotop 8% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together20,633 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
Chicken + tomatotop 8% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together6,031 recipes

Shared aroma: 3-hexenal (apple, fruity).
Chicken + oniontop 8% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together17,814 recipes

Shared aroma: gamma-nonanolactone (coconut, sweet).

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

What each ingredient does

Chicken pieces: Provides the main protein and savoury meat flavour that the soup is built around.
Peanut butter: Thickens the broth and adds rich, nutty body and fat to the soup.
Onion: Adds savoury sweetness and aromatic base flavour as it softens during cooking.
Tomatoes: Contribute acidity, moisture and fresh flavour that balances the rich peanut butter.

The step that matters

Adding the peanut butter mixture. Peanut butter can clump or scorch if added undiluted or to a boiling pan. Mixing it smooth with water first lets it disperse evenly, so the soup thickens without lumps or sticking to the base of the pan.

Swap the peanut

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (chicken, butter, onion, tomato, pepper):

Beansfits better
Sesamefits about as well
Black-eyed peafits about as well
Peanutthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against chicken, butter, onion, tomato, pepper. 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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Chicken Peanut Butter Soup