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West Indies Broccoli with Lemon Sauce and Pecans

A broccoli side dish tossed in a lemon‑scented sauce and topped with pecans.

From the Recipes Wiki (Fandom) · 9 ingredients
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Why it works: Lemon and pepper match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 3% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 27,047 recipes. Both carry trans-2-nonenal, which smells cardboard, fatty. The science ↓

West Indies Broccoli with Lemon Sauce and Pecans

Time12 minutes

Ingredients

Directions

Make the lemon sauce

  1. Combine cornstarch, chicken broth and lemon juice in a small saucepan.

  2. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until thickened.

  3. Stir in sugar, lemon rind and pepper.

Prepare and cook the broccoli

  1. Trim off large leaves of broccoli.

  2. Remove tough ends of lower stalks.

  3. Wash broccoli thoroughly.

  4. Cook covered in a small amount of boiling water for 12 minutes.

  5. Drain and arrange on a serving platter.

Serve

  1. Spoon sauce and pecans over broccoli.

  2. Serve immediately.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

864Calories
49 gProtein
19 gFat
124 gCarbs
What these numbers assume: 8 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Flour1 cup (125g) all-purpose455
Chicken100g cooked165
Butter1 tbsp (14g)102
Broccoli1 cup chopped (156g)55
Sugar1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated49
Pecan1 half (4g)20
Lemonjuice of 1 lemon (48ml)12
Black Pepper1 tsp ground (2.3g)6

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.

  1. Lemon + peppertop 3% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together27,047 recipes

    Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).

  2. Lemon + broccolitop 5% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together809 recipes

    Shared aroma: linalool (floral, citrus).

  3. Pepper + broccolitop 9% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together2,747 recipes

    Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).

  4. Pecans + buttertop 11% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together2,416 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2,3-pentanedione (butter, sweet).

  5. Chicken + buttertop 15% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together13,902 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2-furfurylthiol (coffee, roasted).

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

What each ingredient does

Cornstarch
Thickens the lemon sauce as it heats with the liquid.
Chicken broth
Forms the liquid base of the sauce, adding savory depth.
Lemon juice
Adds acidity that gives the sauce its bright, tart flavor.
Granulated sugar
Balances the lemon's tartness with a touch of sweetness.
Pecans
Add crunch and a toasted, nutty flavor over the broccoli.

The step that matters

Stirring the sauce while it thickens. Cornstarch can clump and scorch on the bottom of the pan if left unstirred over heat. Constant stirring keeps it smooth and evenly thickened as the starch gelatinizes.

Swap the pecans

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (chicken, lemon, sugar, pepper, broccoli, butter):

  1. Sesamefits better
  2. Chickpeafits better
  3. Cashew nutfits better
  4. Pecansthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against chicken, lemon, sugar, pepper, broccoli, 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.

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