Why it works: Yogurt and tarragon work together. They rank in the top 11% of all ingredient pairs, and 116 recipes mention both. Both carry linalool, which smells floral, citrus. The science ↓
The recipe
Ingredients
Contains: milk (auto-detected from the ingredients and method; we can miss things, so check labels)
Directions
Strain the yogurt
Line a strainer with a double layer of cheese cloth.
Spoon the yogurt into the strainer and let it drain, suspended over a bowl, for at least 2 hours.
Discard the drained liquid.
If you desire a thicker spread, drain the yogurt overnight in the refrigerator.
Season and rest
In a small bowl, whisk the strained yogurt with the olive oil, lemon zest, salt, pepper, chives, thyme, tarragon, and basil.
Let stand for 15 minutes for flavors to meld.
Taste and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper.
This recipe comes from the Recipes Wiki on Fandom and is licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Our formatting and summaries are shared under the same licence.
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 aroma chemistry they share, and how many recipes mention both.
-
Yogurt + tarragontop 11% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together116 recipes
Shared aroma: linalool (floral, citrus).
-
Lemon + thymetop 2% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together3,973 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
-
Thyme + tarragontop 2% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together463 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
-
Lemon + tarragontop 2% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together884 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
-
Lemon + peppertop 2% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together27,039 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Whole milk yogurt
- Straining removes whey, leaving a thick, spreadable cheese-like texture.
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Adds fat and smooth richness that carries the herb and lemon flavors.
- Lemon zest
- Adds bright aromatic oils that cut through the richness of the yogurt.
- Fresh tarragon
- Contributes a distinct anise-like aroma that flavors the spread.
The step that matters
Drain the yogurt long enough. Whey must drain out for the yogurt to thicken into a spread. Draining too briefly leaves it loose and watery, so the texture and flavor stay weak.
Flavor stand-ins for the chive
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (milk, yogurt, olive, lemon, pepper, thyme, tarragon):
- Tomatobetter flavor fit
- Potatobetter flavor fit
- Capsicumbetter flavor fit
- Chivethe original
Fit is the average pairing score against milk, yogurt, olive, lemon, pepper, thyme, tarragon. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes. This compares flavor only: it does not check the job the ingredient does in the dish (bulk, moisture, acidity, structure).
“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.
You might also like
Illustration
Illustration
Illustration
IllustrationThe Sunday pairing: one pairing, the chemistry behind it, and how to cook it. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account for sign-in; Pro adds the full results and chemistry.