Why it works: Onion and tomato are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 8% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 20,633 recipes. Both carry 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells earthy, pea. The science ↓
Clam Chowder
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the clams
Wash the clams thoroughly and place them in a pot with half a pint of water.
Boil until the shells open; then remove the clams from the shells, chop finely, and reserve all the clam water for the chowder.
Make the base
Fry the salt pork gently until the scraps are a good brown.
Add the chopped onions to the pork and fry until the onions are delicately cooked so they are almost invisible in the chowder.
Clean the chowder kettle before adding the ingredients.
Add a quart of hot water to the onions; then add the chopped clams, the reserved clam water, and the pork scraps.
Bring to a boil, then add the potatoes cut into eighths or sixteenths of their original size.
Finish and serve
Cook until the potatoes are done; then thicken the chowder with a cup of powdered crackers.
Add a quart of fresh milk; if the chowder is too rich, add more water.
Stir in six sliced tomatoes (or half a can of canned tomatoes). Add good black pepper.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Flour | 1 cup (125g) all-purpose | 455 |
| Milk | 1 cup (244ml) whole | 149 |
| Onion | 1 medium (110g) | 44 |
| Tomato | 1 medium (123g) | 22 |
| 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.
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 + tomatotop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together20,633 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
-
Milk + tomatotop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,226 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-one (mushroom, metallic).
-
Onion + milktop 20% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together13,418 recipes
Shared aroma: hexanal (green, grassy).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Clams (in the method)
- Provide the main flavour and texture of the chowder.
- Potatoes (in the method)
- Add body and starch that give the chowder its substance as they cook.
- Powdered crackers
- Thicken the chowder as their starch absorbs liquid and swells.
- Fresh milk
- Adds richness and creaminess to the broth.
- Tomatoes
- Add acidity and a fresh, sharp note that balances the richness.
The step that matters
Thickening with powdered crackers. Crackers must cook long enough after being added for their starch to gelatinise fully; added too late, they stay pasty and give a raw, floury taste and texture.
Swap the onion
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (milk, tomato):
- Capsicumfits better
- Potatofits better
- Sweet potatofits better
- Onionthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against milk, tomato. 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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