Why it works: Onion and potato are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 3% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 9,023 recipes. Both carry 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells earthy, pea. The science ↓
Traditional English Dinner for French Students
enough Green Veg for 4-5 peopleIngredients
Directions
Make the soup
Put the chicken in a large pan and cover with water.
Boil chicken until bones and meat separate (overnight if possible).
Strain, reserving the liquid.
Re-boil the bones, skin and giblets in the reserved liquid. Once boiling, turn down to a slow heat and simmer until ready. Top up with more water if necessary. Put the meat aside for later.
Peel and chop the soup vegetables into small pieces.
Prepare the green vegetables for the main meal and leave standing in cold water.
About 1 hour 15 minutes before the meal is due to be served, strain the soup liquid and discard the bones, giblets and skin. Reserve about ½ litre of liquid.
Add the soup vegetables and bring to the boil.
Once boiling, turn down and simmer until ready to serve.
Make the main meal
Wash and prick the potatoes. Bake in a hot oven for ¾ hour to 1 hour, depending on size.
Line a pie dish with shortcrust pastry.
Chop and lightly fry the onion.
Prepare the red and green peppers and mushrooms (if using).
Make a roux with flour and butter. Gradually add the reserved liquid, stirring continuously. Gradually stir in the onion, peppers and mushrooms (if using).
Chop the chicken and fill the pie dish with it.
Cover with the roux mixture (any remaining roux sauce or liquid can be added to the soup).
Top with puff pastry, glaze and put into the oven to cook.
As soon as the pie goes into the oven, strain the green vegetables, put them into a saucepan with fresh water and bring to the boil. Cook as you would normally.
Make the apple crumble and custard
Grate the lemon and squeeze the juice.
Peel, core and chop the apples.
Put the apples into a pan with the lemon juice and peel. Add sugar to taste.
Simmer gently until the apples are just soft but not falling to pieces.
Make a crumble with flour and butter.
Turn the apple mixture into a deep pie dish and cover with the crumble. Sprinkle with some brown sugar and bake until golden on top.
Bring the milk to the boil then set aside to cool slightly.
Crack the eggs into a bowl and beat well.
Add vanilla essence and sugar as required. Mix well.
Pour into the milk and gently heat until thickened to requirement (some people like it thicker than others).
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
Counts 15 of 19 ingredients. The other 4 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.
What these numbers assume: 15 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Flour | 1 cup (125g) all-purpose | 455 |
| Chicken | 100g cooked | 165 |
| Potato | 1 medium (173g) baked | 161 |
| Milk | 1 cup (244ml) whole | 149 |
| Vegetable | 1 tbsp (14g) | 120 |
| Butter | 1 tbsp (14g) | 102 |
| Apple | 1 medium (182g) | 95 |
| Egg | 1 large egg (50g) | 78 |
| Pea | 1/2 cup (72g) | 62 |
| Sugar | 1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated | 49 |
| Onion | 1 medium (110g) | 44 |
| Mushroom | 1/2 cup sliced (35g) | 15 |
| Lemon | juice of 1 lemon (48ml) | 12 |
| Vanilla | 1 tsp extract (4ml) | 12 |
| Pepper | 1 tsp ground (2.3g) | 6 |
| Soup | not in our table | 0 |
| Swede | not in our table | 0 |
| Water | not in our table | 0 |
| Pastry | 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 + potatotop 3% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together9,023 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
-
Chicken + mushroomtop 4% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,172 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-butyl acetate (fruity, banana).
-
Butter + mushroomtop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together12,525 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-decenal (waxy, orange).
-
Chicken + potatotop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,756 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-decenal (green, must).
-
Chicken + oniontop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together17,814 recipes
Shared aroma: gamma-nonanolactone (coconut, sweet).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Chicken
- Gives the soup its flavour and yields the meat used in the pie.
- Flour
- Thickens the butter into a roux that gives the pie filling its body.
- Butter
- Fat that combines with flour to form the roux and richens the crumble.
- Eggs
- Thicken the custard as they set when gently heated.
- Milk
- Forms the liquid base of the custard.
- Cooking apples
- Break down when simmered, forming the soft filling for the crumble.
The step that matters
Gently heating the custard. Egg proteins set as the custard heats, so high heat or prolonged boiling can curdle it. Heat slowly and stir until it thickens.
Swap the peas
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (chicken, flour, butter, pepper, mushroom, onion, potato):
- Sesamefits better
- Beansfits better
- Cashew nutfits better
- Peasthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against chicken, flour, butter, pepper, mushroom, onion, potato. 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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