Why it works: Potato and onion are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 3% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 9,023 recipes. Both carry 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells earthy, pea. The science ↓
Coddle
Serves 4Ingredients
Directions
Cook
Submerge bacon, onions, and sausages in broth, then boil for about 5 minutes.
Add potatoes, cutting into bite-sized pieces if necessary.
Add the rest of the stock and return to the boil.
Simmer for about 1 hour, or until the potatoes have started to disintegrate, thickening the broth.
Serve
Add salt and pepper to serve.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
Counts 7 of 8 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.
What these numbers assume: 7 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Sausage | 100g cooked | 301 |
| Chicken | 100g cooked | 165 |
| Potato | 1 medium (173g) baked | 161 |
| Onion | 1 medium (110g) | 44 |
| Bacon | 1 slice cooked (8g) | 43 |
| Black Pepper | 1 tsp ground (2.3g) | 6 |
| 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.
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.
-
Potato + oniontop 3% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together9,023 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
-
Chicken + potatotop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,756 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-decenal (green, must).
-
Chicken + oniontop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together17,814 recipes
Shared aroma: gamma-nonanolactone (coconut, sweet).
-
Potato + peppertop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together8,305 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
-
Onion + peppertop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together68,474 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Potatoes
- Break down during simmering to thicken the broth and give body to the stew.
- Sausages
- Release fat and savoury flavour into the broth as they cook.
- Bacon
- Adds smoky, salty fat that flavours the broth as it renders.
- Onions
- Soften and sweeten as they simmer, adding depth to the broth.
The step that matters
Simmering until the potatoes start to disintegrate. Cooking long enough lets the starch in the potatoes break down and loosen into the liquid, which thickens the broth. Stopping too early leaves a thin broth, while a hard boil can break the sausages and cloud the liquid.
Swap the onion
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (chicken, potato, pepper):
- Capsicumfits better
- Tomatofits about as well
- Onionthe original
- Carrotfits about as well
Fit is the average pairing score against chicken, potato, pepper. 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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