Why it works: Parsley and thyme match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 9,057 recipes. Both carry cuminaldehyde, which smells Spicy, cumin. The science ↓
Chicken Croquettes
Ingredients
Directions
Make the mixture
In a large bowl, mix the chopped chicken, boiled rice, grated cheese, parsley, and spices.
Add the beaten egg yolks and sifted crackers to the mixture and combine thoroughly.
Shape and coat
Shape the mixture into croquettes using a pointed glass.
Dip each croquette in the beaten eggs, then coat with sifted crackers.
Fry and serve
Fry the croquettes in hot lard until browned.
Serve hot.
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.
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 + thymetop 1% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together9,057 recipes
Shared aroma: cuminaldehyde (Spicy, cumin).
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Clove + thymetop 2% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together4,108 recipes
Shared aroma: cuminaldehyde (Spicy, cumin).
-
Chicken + ricetop 5% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,769 recipes
Shared aroma: (e,e)-2,4-decadienal (fatty, deep fried).
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Parsley + clovetop 6% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together6,768 recipes
Shared aroma: cuminaldehyde (Spicy, cumin).
-
Clove + macetop 6% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together8,400 recipes
Shared aroma: methyleugenol (clove, spice).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Egg yolks
- Bind the mixture so the croquettes hold their shape.
- Cheese
- Adds richness and flavour and helps bind the mixture.
- Rice
- Adds body and bulk, giving the croquettes a soft, tender interior.
- Eggs
- Form a coating that helps the cracker crumbs adhere and brown when fried.
The step that matters
Fry in hot lard until browned. If the lard is not hot enough, the croquettes absorb fat and turn greasy before the crumb coating sets. Enough heat seals the crust quickly and browns it, keeping the inside moist.
Swap the onion
The recipe marks onion as optional. How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (chicken, rice, cheese, parsley, clove, mace, thyme):
- Carrotfits better
- Shallotfits better
- Capsicumfits better
- Onionthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against chicken, rice, cheese, parsley, clove, mace, thyme. 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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