Name: Cabbage Slaw with Sour Cream
Ingredients: 1 cup Chilled Sour Cream; 1 cup Lemon Juice or Pineapple Cider; 1/2 cup Honey; 3 cups Shredded cabbage; 1 tsp. Paprika; 1 tsp. Celery Salt; 1 tsp. Salt

Why it works: Lemon and celery match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 3% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 3,467 recipes. Both carry beta-phellandrene, which smells minty, terpene. The science ↓

Cabbage Slaw with Sour Cream

Ingredients

Directions

Make the dressing

Beat the sour cream until thick.
Add lemon juice, honey, and salt slowly.
Beat again for 3 or 4 minutes.

Combine

Add paprika and celery salt to the shredded cabbage.
Add the sour cream dressing and mix lightly.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

319Calories

22 gProtein

2 gFat

61 gCarbs

Counts 7 of 8 ingredients. The other 1 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
Yogurt	170g plain Greek	100
Pineapple	1 cup chunks (165g)	82
Honey	1 tbsp (21g)	64
Broccoli	1 cup chopped (156g)	55
Lemon	juice of 1 lemon (48ml)	12
Celery	1 stalk (40g)	6
Salt	1 tsp (6g)	0
Cider	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.

Lemon + celerytop 3% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together3,467 recipes

Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
Cabbage + celerytop 6% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together1,840 recipes

Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
Lemon + cabbagetop 13% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together397 recipes

Shared aroma: 3-hexenal (apple, fruity).
Lemon + honeytop 17% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together1,707 recipes

Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).
Cream + celerytop 18% of all pairs

Smell alikelow

Cooked together3,863 recipes

Shared aroma: gamma-decalactone (peach, creamy).

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

What each ingredient does

Sour cream: Provides a thick, creamy body and tang that coats the cabbage.
Lemon juice: Adds acidity that brightens the dressing and balances the sweetness.
Honey: Adds sweetness that offsets the sharpness of the lemon juice.
Cabbage: Supplies the bulk and crisp texture that the dressing clings to.

Swap the cabbage

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (cream, lemon, honey, celery):

Carrotfits better
Arrowrootfits better
Mustardfits better
Cabbagethe original

Fit is the average pairing score against cream, lemon, honey, celery. 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.

Cabbage Dressing9 recipes

Chicken Salad623 recipes

Salad Dressing491 recipes

Tomato Salad179 recipes

Like knowing why a recipe works?

The free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.

Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.

Cabbage Slaw with Sour Cream