Why it works: Garlic and onion 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 ↓
Macaroni and Vegetable Soup
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Clean, peel and chop all vegetables, keep separately.
Remove the bacon rind and chop in cubes.
Make the soup
Heat some oil, fry the onions, garlic and bacon.
Continue cooking for 5 minutes.
Add the marrow, eggplant and green pepper.
Continue frying for another 10 minutes.
Add the tomatoes, parsley, salt and pepper.
Cook for further 15 minutes.
Serve
Mix with cooked macaroni and serve hot.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
Counts 11 of 12 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.
What these numbers assume: 11 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Olive Oil | 1 tbsp (14g) | 119 |
| Pea | 1/2 cup (72g) | 62 |
| Onion | 1 medium (110g) | 44 |
| Bacon | 1 slice cooked (8g) | 43 |
| Eggplant | 1 cup cubed (82g) | 35 |
| Bell Pepper | 1 medium (119g) | 31 |
| Tomato | 1 medium (123g) | 22 |
| Black Pepper | 1 tsp ground (2.3g) | 6 |
| Garlic | 1 clove (3g) | 4 |
| Parsley | 1 tbsp chopped fresh (3.8g) | 1 |
| Salt | 1 tsp (6g) | 0 |
| Macaroni | 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.
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.
-
Garlic + oniontop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together29,058 recipes
Shared aroma: furaneol (caramel, strawberry).
-
Tomato + olivetop 1% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together15,539 recipes
Shared aroma: 3-hexenal (apple, fruity).
-
Garlic + eggplanttop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together801 recipes
Shared aroma: coumarin (sweet, hay).
-
Pepper + parsleytop 2% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together34,122 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
-
Garlic + olivetop 2% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together25,665 recipes
Shared aroma: linalool (floral, citrus).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Macaroni
- Provides the starch body that makes the dish a filling, hearty meal.
- Bacon
- Its rendered fat adds savoury flavour for frying the vegetables.
- Tomatoes
- Add moisture and acidity that build the sauce base of the soup.
- Onion
- Softens and sweetens as it fries, forming the flavour base.
- Garlic
- Adds aroma that deepens as it cooks gently in the oil.
- Eggplant
- Breaks down during cooking, giving the soup body and a soft texture.
Swap the peas
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (tomato, garlic, onion, pepper, parsley, eggplant, olive):
- Chickpeafits better
- Beansfits better
- Lentilsfits better
- Peasthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against tomato, garlic, onion, pepper, parsley, eggplant, olive. 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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