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Lentil, Barley, and Tomato Soup

A hearty soup of lentils, barley, and tomatoes simmered with onion and butter.

From the Wikibooks Cookbook · 8 ingredients
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Why it works: Lentils and tomato work together. They rank in the top 5% of all ingredient pairs, and 463 recipes mention both. Both carry 1-hexanol, which smells resin, flower. The science ↓

The recipe

Ingredients

Contains: milk (auto-detected from the ingredients and method; we can miss things, so check labels)

Directions

Prepare

  1. Soak the lentils and barley together overnight, then drain. Optional.

  2. Fry the onion in the butter until soft.

Cook the soup

  1. Add the lentils, barley, and water.

  2. Cook until the lentils are tender. This will take longer if the grains are not soaked.

  3. Add the tomatoes when the soup is almost ready.

Finish and serve

  1. Puree with a food mill, blender, or food processor.

  2. Reheat and adjust the seasoning.

Recipe from the Wikibooks Cookbook.

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.

  1. Lentils + tomatotop 5% of all pairs
    Aroma overlapmoderate
    Mentioned together463 recipes

    Shared aroma: 1-hexanol (resin, flower).

  2. Tomato + peppertop 4% of all pairs
    Aroma overlapstrong
    Mentioned together17,913 recipes

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

  3. Onion + tomatotop 4% of all pairs
    Aroma overlapstrong
    Mentioned together20,622 recipes

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

  4. Lentils + barleytop 5% of all pairs
    Aroma overlapstrong
    Mentioned together57 recipes

    Shared aroma: 1-hexanol (resin, flower).

  5. Barley + tomatotop 6% of all pairs
    Aroma overlapstrong
    Mentioned together155 recipes

    Shared aroma: 3-hexenal (apple, fruity).

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

What each ingredient does

Lentils
Provide the main body and thickness of the soup as they soften and break down.
Barley
Adds chewy texture and body, and thickens the soup as its starch releases during cooking.
Butter
Adds fat and richness, and carries the flavor of the softened onion.
Onion
Builds a sweet, savory base flavor when softened in butter.
Tomatoes
Contribute acidity and fresh flavor, along with moisture to the soup.

The step that matters

Cook until the lentils are tender. Lentils and barley need enough time in liquid to soften fully; unsoaked grains take longer, and undercooked grains leave the pureed soup gritty and uneven in texture.

Flavor stand-ins for the onion

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (lentils, barley, butter, tomato, pepper):

  1. Capsicumbetter flavor fit
  2. Potatobetter flavor fit
  3. Carrotbetter flavor fit
  4. Onionthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against lentils, barley, butter, tomato, pepper. 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.

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