Roast Duck

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.

1. Butter + flourtop 12% of all pairs
   Smell alikelow
   Cooked together124,287 recipes

   Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).

2. Onion + buttertop 15% of all pairs
   Smell alikemoderate
   Cooked together42,912 recipes

   Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).

3. Butter + curranttop 17% of all pairs
   Smell alikemoderate
   Cooked together7,856 recipes

   Shared aroma: isoamyl acetate (banana, pear).

4. Onion + flourtop 17% of all pairs
   Smell alikemoderate
   Cooked together32,460 recipes

   Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).

5. Flour + curranttop 26% of all pairs
   Smell alikelow
   Cooked together8,077 recipes

Butter and flour barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 124,287 recipes: they work on texture and structure more than aroma.

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Duck

Provides the meat, which is cooked through by slow roasting while the skin renders its fat.

Butter

Adds fat to the basting liquid, helping the skin brown and turn crisp.

Flour

Thickens the butter and pan juices in the basting mixture so it clings to the skin.

Currant jelly

Adds sweetness and acidity that balance the rich, fatty duck meat.

Swap the currant

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (onion, butter, flour):

1. Avocadofits better
2. Raisinfits better
3. Coconutfits better
4. Currantthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against onion, butter, flour. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.