Why it works: Potato and onion are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 3% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 9,023 recipes. Both carry 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells earthy, pea. The science ↓
Corn Chowder
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the base
Cut pork into small pieces.
Add onion and cook five minutes, stirring often so the onion does not burn.
Strain the fat into a stewpan.
Parboil potatoes for five minutes in boiling water until covered.
Drain the potatoes and add them to the fat.
Add two cups of boiling water.
Cook until the potatoes are soft.
Finish and serve
Add corn and milk, then heat to boiling point.
Season with salt and pepper.
Add butter.
Split crackers and soak them in enough cold milk to moisten.
Remove crackers, ladle chowder into a tureen, and place crackers on top.
Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)
What these numbers assume: 9 portions
| Ingredient | Portion assumed | kcal |
|---|---|---|
| Flour | 1 cup (125g) all-purpose | 455 |
| Pork | 100g cooked | 242 |
| Potato | 1 medium (173g) baked | 161 |
| Milk | 1 cup (244ml) whole | 149 |
| Butter | 1 tbsp (14g) | 102 |
| Corn | 1/2 cup kernels (82g) | 77 |
| Onion | 1 medium (110g) | 44 |
| Black Pepper | 1 tsp ground (2.3g) | 6 |
| Salt | 1 tsp (6g) | 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.
-
Potato + oniontop 3% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together9,023 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
-
Corn + potatotop 5% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together938 recipes
Shared aroma: (e)-2-octenal (fatty, green).
-
Potato + porktop 5% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,668 recipes
Shared aroma: sotolon (curry, maple).
-
Milk + buttertop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together81,283 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
-
Potato + peppertop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together8,305 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Potatoes
- Starch that softens during cooking, thickening the chowder and giving it body.
- Salt pork
- Rendered fat that carries the flavour of the chowder base.
- Milk
- Adds richness and creaminess, and softens the crackers when soaked.
- Corn
- Adds sweetness and texture to the chowder.
- Butter
- Adds richness and a rounded, buttery flavour at the end.
- Crackers
- Soaked in milk to moisten, then served on top as a soft, absorbent garnish.
The step that matters
Cook the onion gently. Stirring often keeps the onion from scorching, since burnt onion turns bitter and spoils the flavour of the whole chowder base.
Swap the onion
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (corn, potato, pork, milk, butter, pepper):
- Capsicumfits better
- Tomatofits better
- Asparagusfits about as well
- Onionthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against corn, potato, pork, milk, butter, 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.
More corn chowder recipes
You might also like
Potato Croquettes255 recipes
Corn Fritters203 recipes
Pork Cake107 recipes
Roast Pork82 recipesThe free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.