Why it works: Pepper and parsley match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 2% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 34,122 recipes. Both carry 4'-methylacetophenone, which smells bitter almond. The science ↓
Pot Au Feu
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Soak the soup beans in cold water for 8 hours, then drain and place in a large earthen soup pot.
Core and trim the cabbage, then finely slice it and add to the pot.
Boil the dried split peas in water for 5 minutes, drain, and add to the pot.
Simmer
Pour in 3 quarts of water, then add the salt, pepper, and butter.
Boil slowly for 40 minutes.
Add the sliced raw potatoes and chopped parsley.
Cover and simmer slowly for 1½ hours.
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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Pepper + parsleytop 2% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together34,122 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
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Potato + parsleytop 5% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,855 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
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Beans + potatotop 5% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together655 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isobutyl-3-methoxypyrazine (green bell pepper, earthy).
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Beans + peastop 5% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together949 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isobutyl-3-methoxypyrazine (green bell pepper, earthy).
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Cabbage + peppertop 5% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,081 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
- Soup beans
- Hold their shape while cooking and give the soup body and substance.
- Dried split peas
- Break down during simmering to thicken the broth and add earthy body.
- Cabbage
- Softens into the broth, adding moisture, mild sweetness and bulk.
- Potatoes
- Release starch as they cook, helping to thicken the broth and add substance.
- Butter
- Adds fat for richness and a rounder, smoother mouthfeel to the broth.
The step that matters
Boil slowly for 40 minutes. Dried beans and peas need a long, gentle cook to soften fully; a hard boil can break up the split peas and cloud the broth, while undercooking leaves the beans firm.
Swap the peas
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (beans, cabbage, pepper, butter, potato, parsley):
- Chickpeafits better
- Chestnutfits better
- Lentilsfits better
- Peasthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against beans, cabbage, pepper, butter, potato, parsley. 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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