Why it works: Peas and mint are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 2% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,137 recipes. Both carry 1-octen-3-ol, which smells mushroom, earthy. The science ↓
Green Peas
Ingredients
Directions
Cook the peas
Bring a pot of water to a boil and add the salt and mint.
Add the peas and boil briskly for 20 minutes.
Drain the peas in a colander.
Serve
Serve the peas topped with chopped boiled mint and small pats of fresh butter on the side.
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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Peas + minttop 2% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together1,137 recipes
Shared aroma: 1-octen-3-ol (mushroom, earthy).
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Peas + buttertop 16% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,887 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
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Mint + buttertop 26% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together1,559 recipes
Shared aroma: eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Green peas
- The main ingredient, supplying the bulk and soft, tender texture of the dish.
- Fresh butter
- Adds fat for richness and a silky mouthfeel as it melts over the hot peas.
- Fresh mint
- Contributes a cool, aromatic flavour that is carried into the cooking water.
The step that matters
Boil the peas for 20 minutes. Prolonged boiling at high heat softens the peas and breaks down their green chlorophyll, so overcooking leads to mushy, dull-coloured peas. Watch the timing closely and drain promptly.
“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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