Why it works: Butter and cream are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 8% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 41,516 recipes. Both carry delta-dodecalactone, which smells sweet, creamy. The science ↓
Lima Beans
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare and cook
Soak 1 quart of shelled beans in cold water for 1 hour.
Boil the beans in enough water to cover them until tender.
Finish and serve
Drain the water, then add 2 ounces of butter and ½ cup of cream.
Season with ½ teaspoon of white pepper and 2 teaspoons of salt.
Let the mixture simmer briefly, then serve.
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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Butter + creamtop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together41,516 recipes
Shared aroma: delta-dodecalactone (sweet, creamy).
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Lima beans + buttertop 14% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together414 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
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Lima beans + creamtop 24% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together152 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-heptanol (bitter, floral).
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Cream + white peppertop 24% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together1,439 recipes
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Butter + white peppertop 28% of all pairsSmell alikelowCooked together3,814 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
- Lima beans
- Form the main body of the dish and provide its starchy, tender texture.
- Butter
- Adds fat for richness and a smooth mouthfeel.
- Cream
- Adds moisture and richness, giving the beans a creamy coating.
The step that matters
Simmer briefly after adding the cream. Cream can scorch on the bottom of the pan or separate if it boils hard. A gentle, brief simmer keeps it smooth and evenly warmed through.
Swap the white pepper
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (lima beans, butter, cream):
- Nutmegfits better
- Celeryfits better
- Tarragonfits better
- White pepperthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against lima beans, butter, cream. 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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