Name: Ham and Cheese Crêpes
Ingredients: 12 prepared crepes; 1 1/2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese; 12 slices cooked, thinly sliced ham; 2 tablespoons finely chopped green onion; 1/2 teaspoon salt; 1/8 teaspoon pepper; 1/2 cup sour cream; 1/2 teaspoon prepared mustard; 1/3 cup bread crumbs; 3 tablespoons melted butter

Why it works: Onion and mustard match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 6% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 9,259 recipes. Both carry 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells earthy, pea. 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.

Onion + mustardtop 6% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together9,259 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
Bread + buttertop 7% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together27,232 recipes

Shared aroma: delta-decalactone (sweet, creamy).
Ham + breadtop 7% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together2,536 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-acetyl-1-pyrroline (popcorn, roasted).
Cream + buttertop 8% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together41,516 recipes

Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
Cheddar cheese + buttertop 8% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together2,436 recipes

Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).

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

What each ingredient does

Sour cream: Adds moisture and a tangy flavor to the creamy filling.
Butter: Coats the bread crumbs so they brown and crisp in the oven.
Bread crumbs: Form a golden, crisp topping over the rolled crepes.
Crepes: Act as the thin wrapper that holds the filling together.

The step that matters

Cover the pan loosely with foil. Foil traps some heat and moisture, so the filling warms through while the buttered crumb topping does not over-brown before the bake ends.

Swap the mustard

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (cheddar cheese, ham, onion, pepper, cream, bread, butter):

Potatofits better
Capsicumfits about as well
Mustardthe original
Chivefits about as well

Fit is the average pairing score against cheddar cheese, ham, onion, pepper, cream, bread, butter. 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
Ham	100g cooked	145
Cheddar Cheese	1 oz (28g)	113
Butter	1 tbsp (14g)	102
Yogurt	170g plain Greek	100
Green Onion	1 medium (110g)	44
Black Pepper	1 tsp ground (2.3g)	6
Mustard	1 tsp (5g) yellow	3
Salt	1 tsp (6g)	0

Ham and Cheese Crêpes