Why it works: Onion and garlic match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 29,058 recipes. Both carry furaneol, which smells caramel, strawberry. The science ↓
Corn Mochoué
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Clean, cut kernels of corn from the cob and scrape all corn milk from the cob.
Chop onion, peppers, tomato and garlic and add to corn in medium bowl.
Season with salt and creole seasoning with red ground pepper.
Cook
Heat oil in medium sized saucepan.
Add all at one time into hot oil: corn with seasoning, onion, bell pepper; garlic, salt, creole seasoning, sugar and butter.
Cook until oil comes to top of mixture of corn and thickens.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
What these numbers assume: 10 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Olive Oil | 1 tbsp (14g) | 119 |
| Butter | 1 tbsp (14g) | 102 |
| Corn | 1/2 cup kernels (82g) | 77 |
| Sugar | 1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated | 49 |
| Onion | 1 medium (110g) | 44 |
| Bell Pepper | 1 medium (119g) | 31 |
| Tomato | 1 medium (123g) | 22 |
| Chili | 1 tsp (2.7g) | 8 |
| Garlic | 1 clove (3g) | 4 |
| 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.
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.
-
Onion + garlictop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together29,058 recipes
Shared aroma: furaneol (caramel, strawberry).
-
Tomato + garlictop 3% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together14,076 recipes
Shared aroma: furaneol (caramel, strawberry).
-
Corn + tomatotop 6% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together2,099 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
-
Pepper + tomatotop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together17,923 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
-
Pepper + garlictop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together27,090 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Fresh ears of corn
- Provides the main bulk and sweetness, with its milk adding moisture to the dish.
- Butter
- Adds fat and richness to the corn as it cooks.
- Sugar
- Adds sweetness and helps the corn take on light browning as it cooks.
- Tomato
- Adds moisture and a mild acidity that brightens the corn.
The step that matters
Cook until oil comes to top of mixture of corn and thickens. Corn releases starch and moisture as it cooks, and the mixture thickens as that liquid reduces. Stopping too early leaves it watery, while cooking too long can dry it out and make the kernels tough.
Swap the onion
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (corn, pepper, tomato, garlic, butter, sugar):
- Capsicumfits better
- Potatofits better
- Okrafits better
- Onionthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against corn, pepper, tomato, garlic, butter, sugar. 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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