Name: Portuguese New England Fish Chowder
Ingredients: 1 lb. cod or haddock fillets, cut into 1-inch pieces; 1 lb. of small red potatoes; 2 tsp. olive oil; 3 tbsp. chopped Canadian bacon; 1 red bell pepper, cut into med. pieces; 1 green bell pepper, cut into med. pieces; 2 or 3 cloves of garlic; 2 tbsp. of flour; 11/2 cups of low-fat milk; 1/2 tsp. salt; 1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper

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).
Potato + olivetop 7% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together6,458 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-undecenal (sweet).
Potato + peppertop 9% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together8,305 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
Potato + milktop 9% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together3,611 recipes

Shared aroma: (e,z)-2,6-nonadienal (cucumber, melon).
Olive + clovetop 10% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together5,866 recipes

Shared aroma: eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal).

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

What each ingredient does

Cod or haddock fillets: Provide the flaky white fish that becomes tender and opaque as it simmers.
Small red potatoes: Add starch and body, giving the chowder a hearty, substantial texture.
Flour: Thickens the milk into a creamy, smooth broth as it cooks.
Low-fat milk: Forms the creamy liquid base of the chowder.
Canadian bacon: Adds smoky, savory flavor to the cooked base.
Garlic: Adds aroma and savory depth to the base.

The step that matters

Simmer the fish gently and only until opaque. Fish proteins toughen and dry out when boiled hard or cooked too long. Gentle simmering under a cover cooks it evenly and keeps it moist and flaky.

Swap the clove

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (haddock, potato, olive, pepper, flour, milk):

Parsleyfits better
Turmericfits better
Thymefits better
Clovethe original

Fit is the average pairing score against haddock, potato, olive, pepper, flour, milk. 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
Salmon	100g cooked	208
Potato	1 medium (173g) baked	161
Milk	1 cup (244ml) whole	149
Olive Oil	1 tbsp (14g)	119
Haddock	100g cooked	112
Bacon	1 slice cooked (8g)	43
Bell Pepper	1 medium (119g)	31
Chili	1 tsp (2.7g)	8
Clove	1 tsp ground (2g)	7
Garlic	1 clove (3g)	4
Salt	1 tsp (6g)	0

Portuguese New England Fish Chowder