Why it works: Peas and pepper are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 15% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 5,331 recipes. Both carry 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine, which smells earthy, pea. The science ↓
Pea Soup
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Soak the peas overnight in water.
Cook and serve
In the morning, boil the peas until soft, adding more water if too thick.
Pass the cooked peas through a colander.
Before serving, stir in salt, pepper, and butter.
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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Peas + peppertop 15% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together5,331 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
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Peas + buttertop 16% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together4,887 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
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Egg + buttertop 17% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together118,967 recipes
Shared aroma: decanal (soap, orange peel).
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Pepper + buttertop 21% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together85,593 recipes
Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).
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Peas + eggtop 22% of all pairsSmell alikemoderateCooked together2,065 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-octenal (fatty, green).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Whole peas
- Form the main body of the soup, thickening into a smooth purée when cooked and passed.
- Butter
- Adds richness and a silky mouthfeel to the finished soup.
The step that matters
Boil the peas until soft. Dried peas need enough time in liquid for their starch to gelatinize and their cell walls to soften; undercooked peas stay grainy and won't purée smoothly through a colander.
Swap the peas
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (pepper, egg, butter):
- Walnutfits about as well
- Almondfits about as well
- Peasthe original
- Pecansfits about as well
Fit is the average pairing score against pepper, egg, butter. 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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