Why it works: Leek and pepper work together. They rank in the top 12% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 965 recipes. Both carry coumarin, which smells sweet, hay. The science ↓
Leek Soup
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare and cook
Peel, wash, and cut up the leek and potatoes.
Cook them till tender in the water.
Strain and finish
Rub the vegetables through a sieve.
Return to the saucepan, add the milk, butter, and seasoning.
Boil up, and serve.
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.
-
Leek + peppertop 12% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together965 recipes
Shared aroma: coumarin (sweet, hay).
-
Milk + leektop 19% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together200 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl butyrate (apple, fruity).
-
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
- Leek
- Gives the soup its main flavour and, when rubbed through a sieve, body.
- Milk
- Adds richness and a creamy mouthfeel to the finished soup.
The step that matters
Boil up, and serve.. Milk can scorch and stick to the base of the pan if it is left unstirred over strong heat. Bring it up gently and stir to keep it smooth.
Swap the leek
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (milk, pepper):
- Capsicumfits better
- Potatofits better
- Tomatofits better
- Leekthe 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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