Why it works: Onion and pepper are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 11% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 68,474 recipes. Both carry 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells earthy, pea. The science ↓
Artichoke Soup
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Peel, wash, and dice the artichokes, potatoes, and Spanish onion.
In a saucepan, combine 1 quart of water, 1 oz. butter, pepper, and salt; bring to a boil.
Make the soup
Add the diced artichokes, potatoes, and onion; cook until tender.
When the vegetables are tender, rub them through a sieve to strain the liquid.
Return the strained liquid to the saucepan, add 1 pint of milk, and bring to a boil again.
If the soup is too thick, add water until desired consistency.
Serve
Serve with Allinson plain rusks or small diced bread fried crisp in butter or vegetable butter.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
Counts 4 of 5 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.
What these numbers assume: 4 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Milk | 1 cup (244ml) whole | 149 |
| Onion | 1 medium (110g) | 44 |
| 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.
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.
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.
-
Onion + peppertop 11% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together68,474 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
-
Milk + oniontop 20% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together13,418 recipes
Shared aroma: hexanal (green, grassy).
-
Milk + peppertop 22% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together26,984 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl 2-methylbutyrate (fruity, apple).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Artichokes (in the method)
- Provide the main vegetable flavour and body of the soup.
- Potatoes (in the method)
- Break down during cooking to thicken the soup and give it a smooth texture.
- Milk
- Adds richness and a creamy, softer mouthfeel to the finished soup.
The step that matters
Rubbing the vegetables through a sieve. Pressing the cooked vegetables through a sieve breaks down their cell walls and fibres, producing a smooth, even texture. Skipping or rushing this step leaves the soup grainy.
Swap the onion
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (milk, pepper):
- Capsicumfits better
- Potatofits better
- Tomatofits better
- Onionthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against milk, 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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