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Minestrone Alla Capucina

A savory soup made with anchovy, butter, onion, rice, and stock.

From the Wikibooks Cookbook · 5 ingredients
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Why it works: Onion and rice are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 9% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 10,433 recipes. Both carry 2,4-decadienal, which smells seaweed. The science ↓

Minestrone Alla Capucina

Ingredients

Directions

  1. Pound anchovy.

  2. Fry it in butter with the onion and rice until the rice is golden brown.

  3. Remove the onion and season with salt.

  4. Gradually add some stock, cooking until the dish is of the consistency of rice pudding.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

562Calories
35 gProtein
22 gFat
55 gCarbs
What these numbers assume: 4 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Anchovy100g210
Rice1 cup cooked (158g) white206
Butter1 tbsp (14g)102
Onion1 medium (110g)44

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 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 their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Onion + ricetop 9% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together10,433 recipes

    Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).

  2. Anchovy + buttertop 13% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together3,697 recipes

    Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).

  3. Anchovy + oniontop 14% of all pairs
    Smell alikelow
    Cooked together1,263 recipes

    Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).

  4. Butter + oniontop 15% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together42,912 recipes

    Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).

  5. Butter + ricetop 16% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together9,645 recipes

    Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).

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

What each ingredient does

Anchovy
Pounded into the base, it gives the soup its savory, salty flavor.
Butter
Fat for frying that carries flavor and helps the rice brown.
Boiled rice
Starch that thickens the stock into a creamy, pudding-like texture.
Stock
Liquid that is absorbed by the rice, forming the soup's body.

The step that matters

Gradually add some stock, cooking until the dish is of the consistency of rice pudding.. Adding stock slowly lets the rice absorb liquid and release starch evenly, so the soup thickens smoothly instead of becoming watery or clumpy.

Swap the onion

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (anchovy, butter, rice):

  1. Potatofits about as well
  2. Asparagusfits about as well
  3. Onionthe original
  4. Chivefits about as well

Fit is the average pairing score against anchovy, butter, rice. 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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