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 ↓
Macaroni with Tomato Sauce
Ingredients
Directions
Cook the macaroni
Boil water in a pot and add salt.
Cook macaroni in boiling water for about 20 minutes until tender.
Drain macaroni in a colander and place on a dish.
Sprinkle grated cheese over the macaroni.
Make the sauce and serve
In a saucepan, combine tomatoes, salt, pepper, onion, parsley, and lard.
Simmer the tomato mixture slowly for 2 hours, adding water if it gets too dry.
Pour the strained tomato sauce over the macaroni before serving.
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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Tomato + peppertop 7% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together17,923 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
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Tomato + oniontop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together20,633 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
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Tomato + parsleytop 8% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together5,398 recipes
Shared aroma: 4'-methylacetophenone (bitter almond).
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Onion + parsleytop 9% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together25,843 recipes
Shared aroma: 2,4-decadienal (seaweed).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Macaroni
- Forms the bulk of the dish and gives it its body and chew once cooked until tender.
- Tomatoes
- Provide the main sauce, supplying moisture, acidity and flavor as they simmer down.
- Lard
- Adds fat to the sauce, carrying flavor and giving it a richer mouthfeel.
- Grated cheese
- Adds savory, salty flavor to the pasta and helps it taste rich.
- Onion
- Contributes savory aroma and sweetness as it softens in the simmering sauce.
The step that matters
Simmer the tomato mixture slowly for 2 hours. A long, gentle simmer concentrates the tomatoes and softens the onion, while the sauce can scorch or dry out if heat is too high. Adding water as it thickens keeps it from sticking.
Swap the onion
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (cheese, tomato, parsley, egg, pepper):
- Capsicumfits better
- Carrotfits better
- Spinachfits better
- Onionthe original
Fit is the average pairing score against cheese, tomato, parsley, egg, 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.
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