Why it works: Carrot and parsley match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 8,053 recipes. Both carry 2,4-decadienal, which smells seaweed. The science ↓
White Bean Soup
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the beans
Soak beans in cold water for 3–4 hours.
Drain beans and cover with fresh water.
Cook the soup
Boil beans in an earthenware pot together with the oil, finely chopped carrots, onion, and celery.
Cook until beans are tender.
Add sliced peppers, grated tomatoes, and mint.
Season with salt and boil for another 15–20 minutes.
Serve sprinkled with finely‑chopped parsley.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
Counts 7 of 10 ingredients. The other 3 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 |
|---|---|---|
| Onion | 1 medium (110g) | 44 |
| Bell Pepper | 1 medium (119g) | 31 |
| Carrot | 1 medium (61g) | 25 |
| Tomato | 1 medium (123g) | 22 |
| Celery | 1 stalk (40g) | 6 |
| Parsley | 1 tbsp chopped fresh (3.8g) | 1 |
| Salt | 1 tsp (6g) | 0 |
| Bean | not in our table | 0 |
| Peppermint | not in our table | 0 |
| Sunflower Oil | 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.
Photo for illustrative purposes only · Contact us to use it
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.
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Carrot + parsleytop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together8,053 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
-
Carrot + celerytop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together10,173 recipes
Shared aroma: myristicin (spice, warm).
-
Beans + tomatotop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together2,713 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
-
Celery + parsleytop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together6,810 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
-
Pepper + parsleytop 2% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together34,122 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- White beans
- Form the body of the soup and thicken it as they cook and soften.
- Carrots
- Add sweetness and body to the broth as they soften.
- Onion
- Builds aromatic flavour as it softens in the cooking liquid.
- Tomatoes
- Add acidity and body, and help give the broth its flavour.
- Bell peppers
- Contribute sweetness and fresh vegetable flavour to the soup.
The step that matters
Cook the beans until tender before adding the vegetables. Dried beans need prolonged cooking to soften fully, and salt added too early can toughen their skins and slow softening. Seasoning after the beans are tender avoids this.
Swap the parsley
The recipe marks parsley as optional. How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (beans, carrot, celery, onion, tomato, pepper, mint):
- Cuminfits better
- Parsleythe original
- Thymefits about as well
- Oreganofits less well
Fit is the average pairing score against beans, carrot, celery, onion, tomato, pepper, mint. 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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