Why it works: Lemon and pepper match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 3% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 27,047 recipes. Both carry trans-2-nonenal, which smells cardboard, fatty. The science ↓
Samak Meshwi
Ingredients
Directions
Heat 1 tablespoon of oil in a medium frying pan, crush the vermicelli by hand and fry over medium heat for 1 or 2 minutes.
When vermicelli becomes brownish, add 150ml (¼ pint) water, cover pan and simmer for 2 minutes. Set aside in pan.
Wash rice, drain and place in a medium saucepan. Add 400ml (14fl oz) of boiling water, olive oil, salt and cover pan. Boil for 10 minutes, until water has evaporated.
Add the cooked vermicelli to the rice by folding in gently, cover and simmer for 10 minutes on very low heat.
Category:Arabian Recipes
Category:Arabian Meat Dishes
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
What these numbers assume: 8 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Halibut | 100g cooked | 140 |
| Olive Oil | 1 tbsp (14g) | 119 |
| Onion | 1 medium (110g) | 44 |
| Lemon | juice of 1 lemon (48ml) | 12 |
| Cumin | 1 tsp ground (2.1g) | 8 |
| Black Pepper | 1 tsp ground (2.3g) | 6 |
| Bay Leaf | 1 leaf (0.6g) | 2 |
| 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.
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.
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Lemon + peppertop 3% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together27,047 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
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Olive + cumintop 6% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,853 recipes
Shared aroma: eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal).
-
Onion + cumintop 6% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together5,498 recipes
Shared aroma: coumarin (sweet, hay).
-
Pepper + cumintop 7% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together4,382 recipes
Shared aroma: methyl cinnamate (strawberry).
-
Lemon + cumintop 7% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together1,477 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
Swap the onion
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (lemon, olive, pepper, cumin):
- Capsicumfits better
- Spinachfits better
- Tomatofits better
- Onionthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against lemon, olive, pepper, cumin. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.
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