Name: Baby Limas with Italian Sausage
Ingredients: 1/2-pound Italian bulk sausage crumbled; 1 yellow onion sliced; 2 cups water; 1 pound baby lima beans; 1/2-teaspoon ground cumin seed; 1 fresh hot red pepper seeded and chopped; 1-teaspoon salt; 2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper

Why it works: Onion and cumin are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 6% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 5,498 recipes. Both carry coumarin, which smells sweet, hay. The science ↓

Baby Limas with Italian Sausage

Time20 minutes

Ingredients

1/2-pound Italian bulk sausage crumbled
1 yellow onion sliced
2 cups water
1 pound baby lima beans
1/2-teaspoon ground cumin seed
1 fresh hot red pepper seeded and chopped
1-teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper

Directions

Prepare

Place the sausage and onion in a heavy saucepan and sauté until light brown.
Add the water and bring to a boil.

Simmer

Add beans, cumin seed, and hot pepper and bring back to the boil.
Cover, reduce heat and simmer 20 minutes.
Season with salt and pepper.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

416Calories

36 gProtein

16 gFat

33 gCarbs

Counts 7 of 9 ingredients. The other 2 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 7 portions

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Pork	100g cooked	242
Lima Bean	1/2 cup (85g) cooked	108
Onion	1 medium (110g)	44
Cumin	1 tsp ground (2.1g)	8
Chili	1 tsp (2.7g)	8
Black Pepper	1 tsp ground (2.3g)	6
Salt	1 tsp (6g)	0
Water	not in our table	0
Seed	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.

Recipe from the Recipes Wiki (Fandom).

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 + cumintop 6% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together5,498 recipes

Shared aroma: coumarin (sweet, hay).
Cumin + peppertop 7% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together4,382 recipes

Shared aroma: methyl cinnamate (strawberry).
Onion + peppertop 11% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together68,474 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
Onion + lima beanstop 13% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together331 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
Lima beans + peppertop 15% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together468 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

Italian bulk sausage: Provides fat and savory meaty flavor, and browns to add depth to the broth.
Baby lima beans: Form the main body of the dish, becoming tender and creamy as they simmer.
Yellow onion: Softens and sweetens as it cooks, building a flavor base with the sausage.
Ground cumin seed: Adds warm, earthy aroma that complements the sausage and beans.