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 ↓
Russian Cabbage Soup
Ingredients
Directions
Make the broth
In a large soup pot, cover the beef, tomatoes, onion, bay leaf, and garlic with the cold water.
Let stand for 1 hour.
Simmer, covered, for 2-3 hours.
Add the vegetables and finish
Remove the bay leaf and add the cabbage, sugar, vinegar, salt and pepper.
Simmer for 15 minutes or until the cabbage is tender.
Before serving, add the lemon juice and garnish each serving with a dollop of the sour cream.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
Counts 10 of 11 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.
What these numbers assume: 10 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Broccoli | 1 cup chopped (156g) | 55 |
| Sugar | 1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated | 49 |
| Onion | 1 medium (110g) | 44 |
| Tomato | 1 medium (123g) | 22 |
| Lemon | juice of 1 lemon (48ml) | 12 |
| Black Pepper | 1 tsp ground (2.3g) | 6 |
| Garlic | 1 clove (3g) | 4 |
| Vinegar | 1 tbsp (15ml) distilled | 3 |
| Bay Leaf | 1 leaf (0.6g) | 2 |
| Salt | 1 tsp (6g) | 0 |
| Water | 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.
-
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).
-
Onion + cabbagetop 7% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together3,001 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
-
Garlic + cabbagetop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together635 recipes
Shared aroma: linalool (floral, citrus).
-
Tomato + oniontop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together20,633 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 rump or chuck roast
- Provides the meat that becomes tender during long, slow simmering.
- Cabbage
- Becomes tender in the broth and gives the soup its body and bulk.
- Cooked tomatoes
- Add acidity and savory depth to the broth.
- Sugar
- Balances the sourness of the vinegar and tomatoes with sweetness.
- White vinegar
- Adds sharp acidity that gives the soup its characteristic tang.
- Fresh lemon juice
- Adds bright acidity added at the end to lift the flavor.
The step that matters
Simmer the beef gently for 2-3 hours. Beef connective tissue breaks down into gelatin only over long, gentle simmering. Boiling hard toughens the meat and clouds the broth, so keep it at a bare simmer.
Swap the lemon
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (tomato, onion, clove, garlic, cabbage, sugar, vinegar):
- Avocadofits better
- Limefits better
- Plumfits better
- Lemonthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against tomato, onion, clove, garlic, cabbage, sugar, vinegar. 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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