Name: Corn, Shrimp and Tomato Stew
Ingredients: 1 pint picked boiled shrimp; 2 dozen peeled tomatoes; 1 dozen ears of corn, grated; ½ cup butter; 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce; Salt and pepper to taste

Why it works: Tomato and corn match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 6% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 2,099 recipes. Both carry 2-nonenal, which smells fatty, green. The science ↓

Corn, Shrimp and Tomato Stew

Ingredients

Directions

In a large skillet, melt the butter over medium heat.
Add the grated corn and peeled tomatoes, and fry until softened.
Stir in the shrimp, Worcestershire sauce, salt, and pepper.
Simmer the mixture for about 45 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Recipe from a historical cookbook (Internet Archive).

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.

Tomato + corntop 6% of all pairs

Smell alikestrong

Cooked together2,099 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Tomato + peppertop 7% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together17,923 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
Corn + peppertop 11% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together5,324 recipes

Shared aroma: 2-nonenal (fatty, green).
Shrimp + buttertop 11% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together2,931 recipes

Shared aroma: 2,6-nonadienal (cucumber, green).
Corn + buttertop 14% of all pairs

Smell alikemoderate

Cooked together7,345 recipes

Shared aroma: 2,3-pentanedione (butter, sweet).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Shrimp: Provides the main protein and sweet, briny flavor of the stew.
Corn: Adds sweetness and body as it softens and thickens the liquid.
Tomatoes: Contribute acidity and moisture that form the base of the stew.
Butter: Adds richness and carries flavor as the vegetables soften in it.

Swap the tomato

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (shrimp, corn, butter, sauce, pepper):

Capsicumfits better
Potatofits about as well
Tomatothe original
Asparagusfits about as well

Fit is the average pairing score against shrimp, corn, butter, sauce, pepper. 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.