Why it works: Pepper and clove match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 5% of all ingredient pairs, and 17,451 recipes mention both. Both carry ethyl octanoate, which smells fruity, wine. The science ↓
Tomato Soup— with Cream
Ingredients
Directions
Make the soup
Combine tomatoes, water, bay leaves, onion, red pepper, cloves, and salt in a pot.
Simmer for at least 1 hour, adding more water if it reduces too much.
Strain the mixture.
Finish and serve
Thicken with flour until it reaches a bisque‑like consistency.
Serve with a tablespoon of whipped cream in each bowl.
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 aroma chemistry they share, and how many recipes mention both.
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Pepper + clovetop 5% of all pairsAroma overlapstrongMentioned together17,451 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl octanoate (fruity, wine).
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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 + oniontop 8% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together20,633 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
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Onion + peppertop 11% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together68,474 recipes
Shared aroma: 2-isopropyl-3-methoxypyrazine (earthy, pea).
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Tomato + clovetop 12% of all pairsAroma overlapmoderateMentioned together3,474 recipes
Shared aroma: ethyl caproate (fruity, apple peel).
Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs
What each ingredient does
- Tomatoes
- Provide the main body, acidity and flavour of the soup.
- Flour
- Thickens the liquid so the soup reaches a smooth, bisque-like body.
- Whipped cream
- Adds richness and a fat-based creaminess when spooned into each bowl.
The step that matters
Thicken with flour. Flour must be stirred in so it hydrates fully without lumps; starch thickens as it heats, so the soup should be simmered briefly after adding it to reach the intended consistency.
Flavor stand-ins for the clove
How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (tomato, onion, pepper, flour, cream):
- Garlicbetter flavor fit
- Celerybetter flavor fit
- Turmericbetter flavor fit
- Clovethe original
Fit is the average pairing score against tomato, onion, pepper, flour, cream. 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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