Fish Soup

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. Nutmeg + marjoramtop 1% of all pairs
   Smell alikestrong
   Cooked together687 recipes

   Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).

2. Pepper + marjoramtop 3% of all pairs
   Smell alikestrong
   Cooked together2,609 recipes

   Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).

3. Mace + nutmegtop 4% of all pairs
   Smell alikemoderate
   Cooked together6,557 recipes

   Shared aroma: myristicin (spice, warm).

4. Pepper + nutmegtop 7% of all pairs
   Smell alikestrong
   Cooked together13,015 recipes

   Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).

5. Nutmeg + flourtop 8% of all pairs
   Smell alikemoderate
   Cooked together18,623 recipes

   Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).

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

What each ingredient does

Fish

Provides the main body and flavour of the soup as it cooks in the milk.

Whole milk

Forms the liquid base and, as it simmers, adds richness and body to the soup.

Flour and butter dumplings

Thicken the soup slightly and add a soft, filling texture as they cook.

Cold boiled ham

Adds a savoury, salty meatiness that flavours the milk.

The step that matters

Swap the mace

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (fish, milk, ham, pepper, nutmeg, marjoram, flour):

1. Winter savoryfits better
2. Thymefits better
3. Cinnamonfits better
4. Macethe original

Fit is the average pairing score against fish, milk, ham, pepper, nutmeg, marjoram, flour. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.