Why it works: Tomato and milk are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 15% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 2,226 recipes. Both carry 1-octen-3-one, which smells mushroom, metallic. The science ↓
Cream of Tomato Soup
Ingredients
Directions
Make the soup
Combine the tomato soup and milk in a pot.
Add salt to taste.
Heat the mixture over medium heat.
Serve
Serve the soup in bowls.
Add a spoonful of whipped cream on top.
Sprinkle paprika over each serving.
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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Tomato + milktop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,226 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-one (mushroom, metallic).
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Cream + milktop 18% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together29,399 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
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Tomato + creamtop 32% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together2,034 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-one (mushroom, metallic).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Tomato soup
- Provides the main tomato flavor and the body of the soup base.
- Milk
- Thins the condensed soup and adds creaminess for a smoother, richer texture.
- Whipped cream
- Adds fat and a light, rich topping that softens the soup's acidity.
The step that matters
Heat the mixture over medium heat. Milk can scorch on the bottom of the pot or curdle if it boils hard, so heat it gently and stir while it warms.
Swap the tomato
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (cream, milk):
- Potatofits better
- Leekfits better
- Asparagusfits better
- Tomatothe original
Fit is the average pairing score against cream, milk. 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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