Why it works: Pepper and parsley match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 2% of all ingredient pairs, and 34,122 recipes mention both. Both carry 4'-methylacetophenone, which smells bitter almond. The science ↓
Cream of Tomato Soup
Ingredients
Directions
Make the tomato base
Cook the tomatoes for a few minutes, then strain them.
Return the strained tomatoes to the stove, adding butter, salt, pepper, and a little baking soda.
Thicken the mixture with flour until quite thick.
Finish and serve
Heat the milk separately in a double boiler until boiling hot.
When ready to serve, add the remaining baking soda and minced parsley to the tomatoes.
Stir in the boiling milk.
Serve in heated soup bowls.
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 aroma chemistry they share, and how many recipes mention both.
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Pepper + parsleytop 2% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together34,122 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
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Milk + buttertop 7% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together81,283 recipes
Shared aroma: (z)-4-heptenal (biscuit, cream).
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Tomato + peppertop 7% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together17,923 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
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Tomato + parsleytop 8% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together5,398 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
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Butter + flourtop 12% of all pairsAroma overlaplowMentioned together124,287 recipes
Shared aroma: isobutyraldehyde (malty, green).
Butter and flour share little aroma chemistry, yet 124,287 recipes mention both: they likely work on texture and structure more than aroma.
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Canned tomatoes
- Provide the main body and tomato flavour of the soup.
- Milk
- Adds creaminess and a smooth, mellow body to the soup.
- Flour
- Thickens the tomato mixture so the soup becomes quite thick.
- Baking soda
- Neutralises some of the tomato acidity, mellowing the flavour and affecting colour.
- Butter
- Adds richness and fat for a smoother mouthfeel.
The step that matters
Stir in the boiling milk. Adding cold or unheated milk to acidic tomatoes can cause curdling. Heating the milk separately and adding it to the tomato base near serving helps keep the soup smooth.
Flavor stand-ins for the parsley
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (tomato, milk, butter, pepper, flour):
- Cinnamonabout as good a flavor fit
- Cardamomabout as good a flavor fit
- Thymeabout as good a flavor fit
- Parsleythe original
Fit is the average pairing score against tomato, milk, butter, pepper, flour. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes. This compares flavor only: it does not check the job the ingredient does in the dish (bulk, moisture, acidity, structure).
“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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