Name: Bell Pepper Steak
Ingredients: 1 1/2 c. beef broth; 3 c. hot cooked rice; 1 c. sliced green onions; 2 green peppers, in strips; 1 lb. lean beef, cut 1/2" thick; 2 Tbs. cornstarch; 1/4 c. each water and soy sauce; 2 large fresh tomatoes, cut in eighths; 2 Tbs. butter or margarine; 1 Tbs. paprika; 2 cloves garlic, crushed

Why it works: Pepper and clove match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 5% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 17,451 recipes. Both carry ethyl octanoate, which smells fruity, wine. 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.

Pepper + clovetop 5% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together17,451 recipes

Shared aroma: ethyl octanoate (fruity, wine).
Rice + tomatotop 6% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together3,065 recipes

Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
Beef + oniontop 7% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together17,092 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
Pepper + tomatotop 7% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together17,923 recipes

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

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together5,448 recipes

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

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

What each ingredient does

Lean beef: Provides the meat that is browned, then becomes tender during simmering.
Cornstarch: Thickens the sauce as it heats, turning it clear and glossy.
Beef broth: Forms the liquid base of the sauce that the meat simmers in.
Butter or margarine: Fat for browning the meat, adding richness and savory flavor.
Fresh tomatoes: Add moisture and a fresh, slightly acidic brightness to the sauce.
Green peppers: Add crisp-tender texture and a fresh, vegetal flavor to the dish.

The step that matters

Cook the cornstarch mixture until thickened. Cornstarch only thickens fully when the mixture reaches a boil and is stirred, so it must be heated long enough to clear and set. Stopping early leaves the sauce thin, while stirring constantly prevents lumps from forming at the bottom of the pan.

Swap the clove

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

Garlicfits better
Celeryfits better
Thymefits better
Clovethe original

Fit is the average pairing score against beef, rice, onion, pepper, sauce, tomato, butter. 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
Butter	1 tbsp (14g)	102
Onion	1 medium (110g)	44
Tomato	1 medium (123g)	22
Soy Sauce	1 tbsp (15ml)	9
Pepper	1 tsp ground (2.3g)	6
Garlic	1 clove (3g)	4
Water	not in our table	0

Bell Pepper Steak