Why it works: Peas and asparagus match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 2% of all ingredient pairs, and 807 recipes mention both. Both carry 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells earthy, pea. The science ↓
The recipe
Ingredients
Contains: milk (auto-detected from the ingredients and method; we can miss things, so check labels)
Directions
Boil peas and asparagus until tender.
Serve with cream sauce.
Garnish with parsley.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures. See the original page.
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.
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Peas + asparagustop 2% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together807 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
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Cream + saucetop 6% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together4,786 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
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Asparagus + saucetop 12% of all pairsAroma overlaplowMentioned together572 recipes
Shared aroma: ethanol (alcoholic, ethereal).
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Asparagus + creamtop 13% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together838 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonanone (fruity, floral).
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Peas + saucetop 16% of all pairsAroma overlaplowMentioned together1,109 recipes
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Green peas
- Provide the main body and sweet, tender texture of the dish.
- Asparagus tips
- Add a tender, slightly grassy vegetable flavor and texture alongside the peas.
- Cream sauce
- Adds richness and moisture, coating the vegetables with a smooth, creamy texture.
The step that matters
Boil peas and asparagus until tender. Overcooking turns the vegetables soft and dull in color, while undercooking leaves them starchy and fibrous. Checking for tenderness at the earliest point keeps the texture pleasant and the color bright green.
“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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