Why it works: Turnip and white pepper work together. They rank in the top 20% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 275 recipes. Both carry 2-methylbutyraldehyde, which smells malty, chocolate. The science ↓
A Quickly Made Turnip Soup
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the soup
Pare and slice the young mild turnips.
Add the sliced turnips to three pints of veal or mutton stock or good broth.
If desired, slice a large white onion and stew with the turnips.
Stew gently for twenty‑five to thirty minutes, or until reduced to pulp.
Finish and serve
Rub the mixture through a sieve.
Add another quart of stock, salt, white pepper, and one lump of sugar.
Bring to a boil for two or three minutes, skim, and serve.
Add a little cream to improve colour.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Sugar | 1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated | 49 |
| Turnip | 1 medium (122g) | 34 |
| Black Pepper | 1 tsp ground (2.3g) | 6 |
| Salt | 1 tsp (6g) | 0 |
| Veal | 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.
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Turnip + white peppertop 20% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together275 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-methylbutyraldehyde (malty, chocolate).
-
Veal + turniptop 21% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together1,343 recipes
Shared aroma: 3-hexenol (green, grassy).
-
Veal + white peppertop 22% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together1,057 recipes
Shared aroma: eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal).
-
Turnip + sugartop 29% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,330 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-penten-3-one (fish, pungent).
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Sugar + white peppertop 42% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together812 recipes
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Young mild turnips
- Form the main body of the soup and break down into a smooth pulp when stewed.
- Veal stock
- Provides the liquid base and savoury meaty flavour for the soup.
- Cream (in the method)
- Added near the end to lighten the colour of the soup.
The step that matters
Stew until reduced to pulp. The turnips must soften fully so they break down into a smooth purée when rubbed through a sieve. Undercooked pieces stay firm and leave lumps or grit in the finished soup.
Swap the white pepper
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (veal, turnip, sugar):
- Capersfits better
- Cinnamonfits better
- Celeryfits better
- White pepperthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against veal, turnip, sugar. 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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