Double-cheese Strata

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. Broccoli + mustardtop 1% of all pairs
   Smell alikestrong
   Cooked together705 recipes

   Shared aroma: linalool (floral, citrus).

2. Cheese + swiss cheesetop 4% of all pairs
   Smell alikestrong
   Cooked together65 recipes

   Shared aroma: ethyl 2-methylbutyrate (fruity, apple).

3. Onion + broccolitop 6% of all pairs
   Smell alikestrong
   Cooked together3,294 recipes

   Shared aroma: coumarin (sweet, hay).

4. Onion + mustardtop 6% of all pairs
   Smell alikestrong
   Cooked together9,259 recipes

   Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).

5. Bread + cheesetop 7% of all pairs
   Smell alikemoderate
   Cooked together2,130 recipes

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

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

What each ingredient does

Eggs

Set the custard that binds the bread, cheese and vegetables together.

Milk

Makes the egg mixture liquid enough to soak into the bread and create a custard.

Italian bread

Forms the base layer that soaks up the custard and gives the strata its body.

Cheddar cheese

Adds rich flavor and fat, and melts into the custard for a creamy texture.

Swiss cheese

Melts into the custard and adds nutty flavor and stretch.

Broccoli

Adds moisture and vegetable texture to the layers.

The step that matters

Swap the onion

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (bread, cheese, broccoli, swiss cheese, egg, milk, mustard):

1. Asparagusfits better
2. Potatofits better
3. Lettucefits better
4. Onionthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against bread, cheese, broccoli, swiss cheese, egg, milk, mustard. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.