Why it works: Parsley and pepper 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 ↓
Chicken Broth
Ingredients
Directions
Make the broth
Combine the chicken and cold water in a large pot.
Cook slowly until the water reduces to about 3½ quarts and the chicken easily comes off the bones.
Remove the chicken meat and return the bones to the pot.
Continue cooking gently until an hour before dinner.
Strain the broth and let it cool.
Skim off the fat.
Add the rice
Return the broth to the heat, add the seasoning and rice, and simmer for 30 minutes or until the rice is soft.
Thicken and serve
In a separate vessel, heat the milk with a pinch of baking soda.
Pour it over the beaten eggs and stir until it begins to thicken.
Pour the thickened milk mixture into the soup tureen.
Bring the chicken broth to a boil and add it to the milk, stirring well.
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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Parsley + peppertop 2% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together34,122 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
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Chicken + ricetop 5% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,769 recipes
Shared aroma: (e,e)-2,4-decadienal (fatty, deep fried).
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Rice + milktop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together7,374 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
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Rice + parsleytop 10% of all pairsSmell alikestrongCooked together2,762 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
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Rice + peppertop 12% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together8,379 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Chicken
- Its bones and meat release flavour and body into the broth as it cooks slowly.
- Rice
- Its starch softens and thickens the broth, adding body and a tender texture.
- Eggs
- Heated gently with milk, the proteins set and thicken the soup, giving it a creamy texture.
- Milk
- Adds richness and creaminess, softening the broth's flavour and mouthfeel.
The step that matters
Adding the hot broth to the milk and eggs. Eggs scramble when they meet heat too quickly. Stirring constantly while adding the hot broth to the milk mixture spreads the heat evenly so the soup thickens smoothly instead of curdling.
Swap the parsley
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (chicken, rice, pepper, milk, egg):
- Turmericfits about as well
- Cinnamonfits about as well
- Nutmegfits about as well
- Parsleythe original
Fit is the average pairing score against chicken, rice, pepper, milk, egg. 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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