Old-fashioned Vegetable Soup

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. Lima beans + green beanstop 1% of all pairs
   Smell alikestrong
   Cooked together8 recipes

   Shared aroma: 2-isobutyl-3-methoxypyrazine (green bell pepper, earthy).

2. Carrot + celerytop 1% of all pairs
   Smell alikestrong
   Cooked together10,173 recipes

   Shared aroma: myristicin (spice, warm).

3. Lima beans + peastop 2% of all pairs
   Smell alikestrong
   Cooked together85 recipes

   Shared aroma: 2-isobutyl-3-methoxypyrazine (green bell pepper, earthy).

4. Peas + green beanstop 2% of all pairs
   Smell alikestrong
   Cooked together54 recipes

   Shared aroma: 2-isobutyl-3-methoxypyrazine (green bell pepper, earthy).

5. Lima beans + corntop 3% of all pairs
   Smell alikemoderate
   Cooked together222 recipes

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

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

What each ingredient does

Beef stock

Forms the liquid base and carries the savory beef flavor through the soup.

Lima beans

Adds starchy body and a firm, creamy bite after long simmering.

Potatoes

Soften during simmering and release starch that thickens the broth slightly.

Noodles

Absorb broth as they cook, adding soft texture and body to the soup.

The step that matters

Swap the celery

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (beef, lima beans, carrot, potato, peas, corn, green beans):

1. Celerythe original
2. Parsleyfits about as well
3. Cuminfits about as well
4. Dillfits less well

Fit is the average pairing score against beef, lima beans, carrot, potato, peas, corn, green beans. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.