Mocha Filling

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. Cocoa + coffeetop 3% of all pairs
   Smell alikemoderate
   Cooked together91 recipes

   Shared aroma: sotolon (curry, maple).

2. Cocoa + vanillatop 4% of all pairs
   Smell alikemoderate
   Cooked together357 recipes

   Shared aroma: sotolon (curry, maple).

3. Sugar + vanillatop 8% of all pairs
   Smell alikelow
   Cooked together35,032 recipes

   Shared aroma: beta-damascenone (apple, rose).

4. Coffee + vanillatop 9% of all pairs
   Smell alikemoderate
   Cooked together1,391 recipes

   Shared aroma: sotolon (curry, maple).

5. Butter + vanillatop 14% of all pairs
   Smell alikemoderate
   Cooked together20,050 recipes

   Shared aroma: guaiacol (smoky, sweet).

Sugar and vanilla barely smell alike, yet cooks put them together in 35,032 recipes: they 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

Powdered sugar

Adds sweetness and bulk, and its fine crystals dissolve into the filling for a smooth texture.

Butter

Provides fat that makes the filling rich and creamy and helps it hold its shape.

Cocoa

Supplies the chocolate flavour and deep brown colour of the filling.

Strong hot coffee

Adds liquid that dissolves the cocoa and deepens its chocolate flavour.

The step that matters

Swap the cocoa

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (sugar, butter, coffee, vanilla):

1. Cocoathe original
2. Almondfits about as well
3. Hazelnutfits less well
4. Chestnutfits less well

Fit is the average pairing score against sugar, butter, coffee, vanilla. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.