Name: Shrimp Soup with Cumin
Ingredients: 1 to 1¼ lbs shrimp, shells on; 5 cups shrimp or chicken stock, or water; ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil; 4 cloves garlic, peeled; 4 thick slices French or Italian bread; 1 tsp ground cumin; salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste; minced fresh parsley leaves for garnish

Why it works: Garlic and cumin match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 5,082 recipes. Both carry beta-phellandrene, which smells minty, terpene. The science ↓

Shrimp Soup with Cumin

Timeabout 10 minutes

Ingredients

1 to 1¼ lbs shrimp, shells on
5 cups shrimp or chicken stock, or water
½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
4 cloves garlic, peeled
4 thick slices French or Italian bread
1 tsp ground cumin
salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
minced fresh parsley leaves for garnish

Directions

Prepare

Peel the shrimp and simmer the shells in a medium saucepan with the stock or water while you continue with the recipe.
Place the olive oil in a large, deep saucepan or casserole and turn the heat to medium.
Add the garlic cloves and cook, stirring occasionally, until they are a very deep golden, almost brown, about 10 minutes.
Remove them with a slotted spoon and set aside to cool.

Brown the bread

Turn the heat to low and brown the bread in the oil on both sides, in batches if necessary; it will take about 5 minutes.
Remove the slices and spread each with about ½ clove of the cooked garlic.
Mince the remaining garlic.
Cut each of the shrimp into 3 or 4 pieces.

Make and serve the soup

Strain the warmed stock into the casserole, turn the heat to medium, and bring to a gentle boil.
Add the shrimp, cumin, salt, and pepper, and cook over low heat for 3 or 4 minutes.
Place a piece of bread in each of four bowls, then ladle in a portion of soup with shrimp.
Sprinkle with the minced garlic, garnish, and serve.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

857Calories

69 gProtein

19 gFat

99 gCarbs

Counts 9 of 10 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 9 portions

Ingredient	Portion assumed	kcal
Flour	1 cup (125g) all-purpose	455
Chicken	100g cooked	165
Olive Oil	1 tbsp (14g)	119
Shrimp	100g cooked	99
Cumin	1 tsp ground (2.1g)	8
Black Pepper	1 tsp ground (2.3g)	6
Garlic	1 clove (3g)	4
Parsley	1 tbsp chopped fresh (3.8g)	1
Salt	1 tsp (6g)	0
Water	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.

Garlic + cumintop 1% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together5,082 recipes

Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
Pepper + parsleytop 2% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together34,122 recipes

Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
Olive + garlictop 2% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together25,665 recipes

Shared aroma: linalool (floral, citrus).
Cumin + parsleytop 3% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together821 recipes

Shared aroma: cuminaldehyde (Spicy, cumin).
Clove + cumintop 4% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together1,306 recipes

Shared aroma: cuminaldehyde (Spicy, cumin).

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

What each ingredient does

Shrimp: Provides the main protein and flavour, with shells simmered to build the stock.
Garlic: Cooked to deep golden for a sweet, toasty aroma, and added raw as a sharp finish.
Extra-virgin olive oil: Carries the garlic's flavour and fries the bread, adding richness.
French or italian bread: Browned in oil and placed in the bowl, it soaks up the broth and gives body.
Stock: Forms the liquid base of the soup, supplying savoury depth.
Ground cumin: Adds warm, earthy aroma that flavours the broth.

The step that matters

Browning the garlic. Garlic turns bitter if it goes past deep golden to dark brown. Cooking slowly over medium heat and stirring keeps it sweet and nutty, which flavours the oil and the soup.

Swap the clove

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (shrimp, olive, garlic, bread, cumin, pepper, parsley):

Oreganofits better
Thymefits better
Corianderfits better
Clovethe original

Fit is the average pairing score against shrimp, olive, garlic, bread, cumin, pepper, parsley. 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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Shrimp Soup with Cumin