Why it works: Parsley and lemon match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 14,037 recipes. Both carry beta-phellandrene, which smells minty, terpene. The science ↓
Brussels Sprouts
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Boil the Brussels sprouts in slightly salted water until tender, then cool and drain in a colander.
Cook and serve
In a frying pan, melt the butter over medium heat.
Add the sprouts, salt, and pepper, and toss until heated through.
Stir in the chopped parsley and lemon juice, then serve.
Alternatively, layer the drained sprouts in a deep dish with grated parmesan, salt, pepper, and melted butter, and serve immediately.
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.
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.
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Parsley + lemontop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together14,037 recipes
Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).
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Pepper + parsleytop 2% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together34,122 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
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Pepper + lemontop 3% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together27,047 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
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Butter + parmesan cheesetop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,163 recipes
Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).
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Pepper + parmesan cheesetop 14% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together5,322 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
- Brussels sprouts
- Form the main body of the dish and provide its tender, slightly sweet vegetable texture.
- Butter
- Adds fat and richness, coating the sprouts and carrying flavour.
- Lemon juice
- Adds acidity that brightens the buttery flavour and balances richness.
- Grated parmesan cheese
- Adds savoury, salty depth and a nutty flavour in the alternative layered version.
The step that matters
Boil until tender, then cool and drain well. Overcooking makes sprouts soft and sulphurous, while excess water left on them dilutes the butter and stops them coating properly. Draining thoroughly keeps the butter and seasonings clinging to the sprouts.
Swap the brussels sprouts
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (pepper, butter, parsley, lemon, parmesan cheese):
- Spinachfits better
- Asparagusfits better
- Shallotfits better
- Brussels sproutsthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against pepper, butter, parsley, lemon, parmesan cheese. 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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